Remembrance
by Mister-e Guy
Summary: Darth Vader was finally given the order to kill Bail Organa, whom he had detested for years. Late at night, he storms Bail's palace to kill the traitor. However, there he sees something he hadn't seen for four years. A pair of innocent brown eyes.
1. Chapter 1

**I finally got around to writing my own Star Wars story since I've been wanting to for a long time. Anyway, hope you like it and give me your thought if you want.**

 **Remembrance**

 **Chapter 1**

The Aldera Royal Palace burned.

Darth Vader marched to heavily armed doors of the throne room, the footsteps of the troop of clones echoing as the forces standing guard of the room began to fire.

Vader ignited his red lightsaber and reflected the blaster shots coming his way with ease. Guards began to fall one by one, clones were far more skilled than the average stormtrooper which is why his main forces were made up of them.

He thrust his left hand forward and the rest of the guards were violently flung back as the massive doors broke open forcefully. The fear on those inside the throne room was intoxicating as he stepped inside with his troop behind him, their blasters bared.

"T-This is inexcusable!" Bail Organa declared. "We abide by the Empire!"

"Your thoughts betray you senator," Darth Vader said in his deep mechanical voice. "The Emperor knows of your aid to the Rebels. Were you foolish enough to believe that we wouldn't find out?"

"You won't get away with this," Bail said in a low voice.

The senator's eyes went wide with fear when he felt an invisible grasp on his throat and his feet left the ground.

"I already have," Vader stated firmly as he closed his left fist and, with an audible 'crack,' the senator's body crumpled lifelessly on the floor.

It was quiet for a brief moment until the traitors in the room screamed in terror.

Vader turned his back on them and began to walk out of the room, "Kill them all."

As the sound of blaster fire ran through the palace, Darth Vader marched down a large hall. His Master had demanded that all those in the palace be killed and he had eagerly obliged. Bail Organa had been a thorn at his side for the four years since the rise of the Empire. They hardly exchanged words and the senator had no way to stand against him, but the fact that someone clearly in league with traitors had been a senator was offensive.

He was pleased to know that his Master had finally seen through the senator.

Vader was snapped out of his thoughts when he felt something with the Force.

"Lord Vader, we have terminated the traitors," the commanding clone informed behind him.

"Very well, go outside and guard the perimeter."

The clone saluted, knowing better than to question his Lord.

* * *

Darth Vader found himself standing before a seemingly normal wall. Had he not searched with the Force for any signs of survivors, he might have missed it, but there was no question that there was someone behind this wall. A secret door, one that Organa had died in a last-ditch effort to keep whoever was inside hidden, the fool should have known better than to think he would simply kill him and leave.

His lightsaber hissed as he used it to cut his way inside and soon enough, the part of the wall fell on the floor and revealed a dark room.

The dark lord stepped inside. His heavy breathing consumed the room, which was laid bare except for a bookshelf and a table standing at the corner of the room.

He stood there, cold, calculating, until he heard a quiet whimper. His head turned at the sound, and he instantly felt a wave of fear hit him.

Darth Vader walked to the table and pulled it away to reveal a small quivering form covered in a heavy blanket.

A child?

Using the force, he pulled the blanket off and almost stepped back in shock.

He was met by the frightened gaze of a small girl dressed in a simple white dress. What struck him about the child were her brown eyes.

A day didn't go by in which he didn't see those same brown eyes involuntarily, replaying vividly in his mind whenever he slipped and found himself immersed in a memory. Padmé. His wife. His angel. Why did this child remind him so much of her?

Why was the Force crying out to him?

The girl whimpered and hugged her trembling form.

"Who are you?"

She flinched, and he cursed the wretched voice from the equally wretched suit he was trapped in.

"I won't hurt you," Vader felt confused at those words, he had **meant** them.

The girl looked up slowly. Vader almost turned away when he saw her big teary brown eyes looking up at him, Force even her face reminded him of _her_.

"My name..." she paused, drawing in a shaky breath, "...is Leia Organa."

Leia.

Of all the names in the galaxy...

Why did it have to be the name he had decided on when he and Padmé discussed whether the baby would be a boy or a girl?

He remained still, a hundred thoughts running through his mind.

Weak.

Foolish.

Sentimental.

Anakin Skywalker was all these things, so why was Vader wavering? Why had he not killed this child yet? More importantly, why did he feel a _connection_ to her?

…

There was no way he could harm this child.

"Come."

Darth Vader did not give her much time to make a decision as he was already walking out the door and before long, the girl ran after him.

"Where are my mommy and daddy?"

Dead.

"They have left."

She looked up at him in fear, "They left me?"

"Yes."

Her eyes welled up with tears and he picked her up without warning and gently pushed her face into his shoulder.

"You are safe."

Dozens of lifeless bodies were scattered throughout the floor. Darth Vader stepped over them calmly while holding the girl to her shoulder. It would be for the better if she didn't see any of this.

"W-What's going...to happen to me?" Leia asked in a small voice without looking up.

Vader headed for a balcony in the large hall they were on. As much as he trusted his men with fighting, they were loyal to the Emperor and would tell his Master anything if asked. No, he couldn't let anyone know what he was doing.

Even he himself didn't know what he was doing. He thought he was above acting on impulse as Skywalker had done, but there was something about this girl that felt strange and he would get to the bottom of it. However, he couldn't trust anyone around him.

Without warning, he jumped from the balcony, causing Leia to yelp in surprise and clutch him tightly.

They landed safely on one of the lower floors and he began to move once again.

"You are going to come with me. I will keep you safe."

Leia looked at him in surprise before she lowered her head into his shoulder. He didn't know what that meant but was thankful as she didn't have to see him choking the life out of a clone that saw them.

He continued moving swiftly through the shadows until he was finally in one of his personal ships. While it was meant for battle, it had enough room for him and the small girl, who he had put to sleep a few moments ago with a simple sleep suggestion.

Darth Vader's shoulders slumped in brief relief.

He had communicated with his men a few moments before boarding his ship, telling them to keep the palace guarded as his Master had ordered. His presence was not required in the palace anymore but he would need to stay in the Executor for a few days, which wouldn't be a problem. His living quarters were large and even had their own hangar.

It would give him enough time to decide on what he was going to do.

* * *

"Lord Vader."

Vader kneeled before the projection of his Master.

"Have you dealt with the traitors in Alderaan?"

"Yes Master, they are dead."

"Good. Remain in orbit there and destroy any hint of rebellion should it arise. Those Alderaan fools will learn to obey the Empire."

"As you wish, my Master."

The connection ended and Vader rose. He was in one of the four rooms in his living quarters. One held his meditation chamber. Another had a kitchen. The next one had a bedroom which he never used since sleep in a bed was near impossible for him. Lastly, there was his office in which he could communicate with anyone if need be. All of these rooms were connected by a room which acted as a living area but was mostly bare. In short, it was as if he had an apartment in his ship.

It had been about four hours since he arrived in the ship with Leia, who was sleeping on the bedroom. All-together, he had to say that he had been awake for two days and he was beginning to feel fatigued. He longed to rid himself of the suit and rest in his meditation chamber but he could feel Leia begin to wake up.

He left his office and entered the bedroom, finding the small girl looking at him meekly.

"How was your rest?"

"Okay," she answered. There was a brief pause and her eyes glimmered with tears, "Why did mommy and daddy leave without me?"

"They were bad people who left their child in order to escape."

Her lip quivered and a couple of tears rolled down her cheeks, "I'm...not. They're not...my real mommy and daddy. I heard them one day. They said that my real mommy was dead."

"I see."

Vader didn't know what to do or say as he watched the girl weeping. However, a wave of protectiveness he didn't know he still had hit him and he moved to her side and picked her up, much like he did when leaving the palace with her.

"Am...am I going to be alone now," Leia cried.

"You won't be alone," he said firmly.

She didn't say anything but what she did surprised him.

Leia wrapped her tiny arms around his neck and nestled her head on his shoulder. He didn't know what to do but placed a comforting hand on her back in an attempt to soothe her. It seemed to work as she drifted to sleep once again.

He didn't know about kids but he guessed that it was expected of her to be exhausted after all that happened. At least it gave him the chance to put her to bed and then go to his meditation chamber.

The white walls closed around him and his helmet came off for the first time in two days. A soft choked sigh escaped his lips as he leaned his head back and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

What had he gotten himself into?

Leia had awakened a side of him that he thought dead. Maybe it was because of how similar she looked to Padmé, which would also explain why he had felt a sort of connection to her, but a part of him felt the need to protect her.

Well, no use thinking it over now. He had brought Leia to his ship, it wasn't like he could take her to some orphanage and expect her to keep quiet about it. Never mind the fact that he didn't trust anyone else to protect her, but if word reached his Master, then he would be severely punished and Leia most likely killed.

He groaned and pushed aside those thoughts for now, he need to try to get a bit of rest. Nightmares haunted him but his body was demanding that he rest, his badly broken body... His jaw clenched, the last thought instantly reminding him of who it was that put him in this state.

One day he would find his _brother_ again, a wave of anger hit him when he thought of that word. It was what _he_ had called him and yet stood idly by as his body burned and walked away, leaving him for dead.

Vader dropped those thoughts and closed his eyes in an attempt to find some rest.

* * *

Only two hours later, Darth Vader moved to his office before he stopped on his tracks when he felt fear through the Force. Usually he would bask in it, but when he felt where it was coming from, he stalked to Leia's room with his lightsaber drawn, expecting to find something to kill, but put it away when he noticed that the girl was alone in the room, turning and tossing in her sleep.

It must be a nightmare.

Vader approached Leia and shook her shoulder lightly to wake her.

She let out a quiet sob as her teary eyes opened and took in the foreign room.

"Calm down, you had a nightmare."

Darth Vader's mechanical voice might have terrified the galaxy, but for Leia, it was something she was getting more comfortable with.

"Would you like something to drink?" He asked while watching as the girl wiped away her tears.

"I'm...okay..." she looked at him slowly, "Um...what's your name?"

"Darth Vader," he paused, "You may call me Vader."

She nodded, "Where are we?"

"We are on board my ship."

"We're in space?" Leia's brown eyes widened at the news, her nightmare already forgotten.

"Yes."

"I've never been in space before," she smiled, "Can I go see?"

"See what?"

"Space. Are there windows here?"

"Follow me," Vader rose and led the girl out of the room. While the room that connected the four separate rooms on his living quarters was bare, it did have a large window that was always covered by thick metal, but there was a button which made the metal covers slide away and give a view of space. He never used it until now.

Leia's eyes lit up in awe when the metal covers slid away and revealed millions of stars and a big round planet that was green and blue.

"What planet is that?" She asked excitedly.

"That is Alderaan."

"Whoa..."

Darth Vader felt a pull on his lips as he gazed at the girl's starstruck face. She bounced on her heels as she pressed her hands and forehead on the window and let out a small giggle.

He had to look away. The way her innocent smile made her brown eyes light up was too reminiscent of his wife.

A weak pull on his mechanical right hand caused him to look down in surprise to see Leia smiling at him.

"Can we go see more planets?"

"We will, but we have to stay here for now."

"Why?"

Darth Vader didn't believe that she would understand that it was because of his job, so he quickly came up with something.

"This ship is very big, that's why it has to gather a lot of energy before traveling across long distances."

"Gather energy?"

"In other words, it has to rest before moving."

She smiled in understanding, "Ah! I get it now."

When Vader saw her brow furrow in what had to be another question forming in her mind, he decided to change the subject before she bothered him with more questions.

"How old are you Leia?"

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise before a thoughtful look showed on her face, "Um..." She counted her small fingers and smiled proudly once she was done, "I'm four!"

A pang of hurt hit Vader when he heard her answer. Four years old... Would his and Padme's child have looked like Leia?

He buried the thought almost as soon as it came.

"Mr. Vader?" She was looking at him a bit shyly, "I'm hungry."

"Very well, go wash yours hands and I'll prepare something."

"Where's the restroom?"

"It's in the room where you slept."

"Okay," she smiled an innocent smile and ran off.

Vader had to marvel at a kid's ability to become distracted. Only moments before she had been crying about a bad dream but was now acting as if she never had it in the first place.

He shook his head and went to the kitchen. The room was as big as the others, it had the usual equipment for making food, and off the side was a table with far too many chairs for someone who ate alone, or rather, the table and chairs were useless since he could only eat in his meditation chamber.

For the first time in years, a chuckle escaped his lips.

Darth Vader, Sith Lord and second in command of the galaxy, was about to cook for a little girl he had just met.

The image had to be ridiculous.

* * *

Darth Vader was finding it hard not to snap at Leia.

After she had finished with her breakfast, he had gone into his office to work on reports and come up with strategies to catch the rebels. It was normal tedious work, however, he didn't expect for Leia to follow him, make herself comfortable on the floor next to him and yap away about trivial things.

He should look into getting her something to amuse herself with.

"Mr. Vader, do you like your cape?"

"I don't dislike it."

"So you like it," she smiled while pulling on the cape and then looked up at him in wonder, "Is black your favorite color?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because it's calming."

"Hmm..." she looked around the room and set her eyes on Vader once more, "Why do you have a mask?"

He stood up and walked out the door with a confused Leia following behind him.

Her bottom lip quivered, "D-Did I do something wrong?"

"I wanted to show you something."

The two walked into the kitchen, which confused Leia. She had already eaten, why did they come here again? Did Mr. Vader want to eat something?

Darth Vader stretched a hand towards a chair on the other side of the room, and Leia let out a surprised yelp when she saw the chair float in the air.

"Wow! Did you do that?!"

"Yes," he said as he put the chair down and pulled an apple to his hand.

Leia laughed in excitement, "How do you do that?"

Good, it seemed he had pushed her earlier questions to the side, he hadn't liked where they were going.

"With the Force."

"The Force? What is that?"

"I will tell you later, for now I want to ask if there's anything you want me to bring here."

Leia cocked her head to the side, "Like what?"

"Perhaps something that you like to do when you're bored."

"Then..." she seemed sheepish, "I want to go to school. A lady came to teach me before but I never got to go with my friends."

"That can be arranged for later, however, for now I could get a droid to teach you."

Her eyes lit up, "Okay."

This girl... Was it normal for kids to enjoy studying as much as she appeared to?

Regardless, Vader decided to look into it when he could. For now he had to go work on some reports.

As he walked to his office, he was again followed by a grinning Leia.


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow, I was no expecting such a big response from you guys. Thanks a lot for giving feedback, it really helps put me in the mood to write more.**

 **Remembrance**

 **Chapter 2**

Darth Vader was relieved when the droid he asked for arrived within the hour. It was an average protocol droid but he could easily change its use so that it could begin to teach Leia whatever it was that kids her age were learning.

He stood behind the droid, working on setting up the chip he had prepared moments earlier, with Leia sitting on his office chair.

"So you can make the droid teach me things?" She asked while spinning on his chair.

"Indeed," he answered.

"Then you're smarter than the droid! Why can't you teach me?"

At that question an image of her kneeling before him dressed in black clothes and looking up at him with yellow eyes flashed in his mind.

"That won't happen!"

His voice was firm, laced with the disgust he felt from the image, and caused the girl to stop her spinning and look down in apparent fear.

Vader stopped working on the droid and moved to place a hand on the teary-eyed girl's head, "I did not mean to raise my voice. I...apologize."

Leia's lips twitched before she jumped off the chair, hugged his leg, and began to cry.

He tried not to let his annoyance show as he rubbed her head and looked towards the droid, he couldn't wait for the blasted thing to be ready. As much as he felt a connection to Leia, she was very good at interrupting his work, something which annoyed him. Maybe with the droid she wouldn't be so clingy.

Vader lifted her off the floor and held her on his left arm as he continued to work on the droid.

* * *

At last, once the droid was ready and it had begun to teach an eager Leia, Darth Vader was back where he belonged. Standing with his arms clasped behind his back in the bridge of his ship as his men worked on keeping the ship running.

"Lord Vader," one of his men, Admiral Firmus Piett saluted. Receiving silence, he continued, "Our forces have informed us that a couple of transport vehicles have been attacked by unknown individuals."

"There is a shelter not too far from the palace, they distribute food and give care to the sick."

"Yes milord, there is a troop guarding it considering how close it is to the palace."

"Very well, I want you to burn it down and kill those in it," Darth Vader commanded, "We will make Alderaan hate these individuals to the point in which they either kill or bring those traitors to us. Should they attack again, tear down a medcenter."

Piett saluted, "Understood milord."

Darth Vader clenched his fists. Soon those traitors would be dealt with, if they weren't gone by the next couple of days then he would personally go down there and hunt them down himself. While he was usually patient in matters such as this, he was troubled by the fact that the longer Leia stayed on the ship, the greater the chances of someone seeing her and informing the Emperor.

He growled under his breath and left the bridge, his cape whirling behind him.

It had been a few hours since he left Leia with the droid and, as much as he would have preferred to stay on the bridge, he had to make sure she was safe. While her presence dug up something he'd rather keep dead, the overpowering need to make sure she was safe made it hard not to go check on her.

Once he entered his living quarters, he found Leia laying on the floor kicking her feet in the air while writing something.

"Ah, Lord Vader, so good of you to return," the protocol droid greeted. "Miss Leia here was just working on an assignment."

"Mr. Vader!" Leia smiled and ran over to hug his leg and look up at him excitedly, "E-3PO taught me a lot of things today! I even drew a picture!"

"How nice."

"I'll bring it to you," she laughed while running over to dig through a small pile of papers.

Vader turned to the droid, "Did she give you any problems?"

"Not at all Lord Vader," the droid, "She mostly stayed quiet except for when she asked questions. She's a very bright girl."

"Look," Leia handed him a piece of paper showing two smiling figures, one tall and dark, while the other was small, "That's me and you."

"It's..." Vader didn't know exactly what to say as she was looking at him expectantly. "Very good. You are quite talented."

It appeared that he gave the right answer as she smiled brightly and laughed.

For the first time in a long time, Vader felt a smile on his face, but quickly forced it down once he was aware of it. Leia was dangerous, he thought as he watched her get another piece of paper and draw, she was the third person to have the ability to sway his heart so easily. If only for a moment, with only a smile and a hint of affection she had pushed through four years of darkness.

 **That** , he could not allow.

"Continue with your studies Leia, I'm going to be in my meditation chamber. Do not disturb me."

"Okay," she answered.

With that, he left the living are and entered his meditation chamber, letting out a breath once the mask was off. It was time to immerse himself in the Dark Side once more, something he had done already before going to the bridge.

* * *

 _The Jedi Temple was deathly quiet as Darth Vader entered the council room, which was where he had been belittled many times. Just the thought of those flawed Jedi telling **him** to be perfect caused another wave of anger to hit him._

 _It was dark in the room but one hopeful kid stepped forward, a girl with brown eyes._

" _Mr. Vader?"_

Vader's horrified eyes snapped open, broken out of his immersion in his darkest memories to draw power from the Dark Side. An involuntary shudder ran down his spine and he brought a shaky hand to the bridge of his nose. The memory of that night alone had stayed with him for these four years, but it served to fuel his power and for that reason he was able to think back on that night.

Why did Leia have to appear in it?

He would never hurt her, she was possibly the only person in the galaxy that he didn't want to hurt. Just imagining her in place of the youngling...

Vader quickly pushed the thought away, put on his mask, and left the meditation chamber, finding Leia sitting against a wall with a look of concentration as she tried to read a small book on her hands. The droid was nowhere to be found, probably finished its lesson and shut down somewhere.

"What are you reading?"

"Mr. Vader," she smiled and held up a book, "E-3PO told me to read this but it's a hard."

"It certainly looks like a difficult book," Vader said in amusement when seeing the colorful cover.

"I know," Leia nodded in understanding as she placed the book at her side and placed her hands on her lap. "That is why I think you should help me."

"Is that so?"

The small girl nodded, "You are a grown up so it's easy for you to read. That's why you have to teach me."

Again, Vader felt a smile tug at his lips. Leia was carrying herself almost as a senator would.

"Very well, come to my office."

A smile lit up her face as she took her book and ran after him. Vader sat himself on his chair and was surprised when Leia comfortably sat on his lap and leaned against his body.

"What is this book about?" He asked.

"A boy looking for something," she said simply.

Vader nodded and began to read the book for her.

* * *

His eyes snapped open in surprise, he was still in his office and, looking down, Leia was sleeping in his arms. She must have fallen asleep while he was reading but he couldn't recall when he drifted off. It probably didn't last long but he had never dozed off on his mask before.

Leia began to stir and yawned before rubbing her eyes, "Mr. Vader, I feel hungry."

"I will make you something, but before that go wash your hands," he said while pushing her off lightly and standing up.

She nodded and sleepily made her way out of the room while Vader headed for the kitchen. He didn't think of himself as a good cook, nor did he ever want the title, but he should be able to make something acceptable for Leia. Breakfast had been easy, pancakes were rather easy to make, but he was sure that she wouldn't appreciate the sort of food he learned to cook during his war days.

So he did the sensible thing and decided on something he only needed to heat.

It wasn't long until Leia returned and sat on the table while looking at him with a frown.

"Mr. Vader, why do you have a mask all the time?"

He guessed that she would bring this up again at some point and figured that now was as good a time as any to get the question out of the way for good.

"I am very sick, without this mask I can't breathe."

Leia looked at him in horror before she bolted off the chair and tackled his leg while looking up at him in alarm, "You're not going to die right?"

Vader stood there quietly for a moment. Surprise didn't begin to explain how it felt to have someone genuinely care for his well-being and be so afraid _for_ him rather than _of_ him.

Tears began to form on her eyes and he gently rubbed her head, "Never. I am the most powerful man in the galaxy."

She didn't seem convinced, "Really?"

"Of course. That's why I can do this," without warning he lifted her gently with the Force and moved her back to her chair, causing her to laugh, "Now sit there while I serve your food."

Leia giggled and nodded as she wiped away her tears.

* * *

Darth Vader hated to admit that he felt _comfortable_ with Leia sleeping on his lap while he worked on a report in his office. Even so, as he looked around the room that was completely bare except for the large desk and the chair he was sitting on, he realized that most of his properties across the galaxy were very similar. He had to look into getting more furniture wherever he decided to be with Leia, not to mention that he needed to get a room ready for her.

His comlink interrupted his thoughts.

"What is it?"

"Lord Vader, the Emperor requests you communicate with him."

Vader bit back a growl, "Very well."

He switched off the device and stood up with Leia on his arms, she stirred but didn't wake up thankfully. Just in case, he sent another sleep suggestion with the Force before he put her to bed and left his living quarters. While he could simply go to his office to communicate with his Master, he didn't want to risk Leia walking in by accident.

With that in mind, he strutted to a room, kicked everyone out, and kneeled before the projection of his Master.

"What if thy bidding my Master?"

"Lord Vader, I have come with good news," the Emperor said in a condescending manner. "Your resent work has been impressive and I have decided to reward you."

"You're too generous Master," Vader said, knowing that refusing any _reward_ came with a very painful punishment.

"It appears that you are not physically needed in Alderaan after all. I have heard that even civilians are trying to bring out the traitors at all costs. Seeing as Empire Day has just passed, I decided to gift you a large palace at the beautiful Naboo."

Not for the first time, Vader was thankful that the blasted mask did not reveal the fury that was surely written all over his face.

"Take a couple of weeks off my friend, relax and appreciate Naboo."

"Master." There was no way he could go anywhere near that planet, just looking at it from afar was enough to dig up painful unwanted memories that he had once treasured. "I can't take two weeks off."

The Emperor smirked, "Of course you can my friend. This is non-negotiable. You deserve a good rest."

Vader knew what _non-negotiable_ meant when it came to his Master, 'obey or you will be severely punished.' He could either quietly comply and relive memories that would bring him nothing but pain, or he could go through the same thing **and** be badly injured.

"Thank you, my Master."

A smirk appeared on the Emperor before the image disappeared.

Darth Vader clenched his fists tightly, knowing full well that his Master enjoyed torturing him at every turn. He **needed** to kill something at this very moment, luckily a clueless office stepped into the room.

Those standing in the hallway outside of the room did their best to ignore the body that was flung across the hall until it crashed against a wall with a sickening cracking sound. None of them needed to look to know that the officer was dead.

Vader marched out of the room without a word and cursed under his breath when he felt Leia's fear through the Force. He had been hoping to head straight to his meditation chamber to gather his thoughts but it looked like it needed to wait.

With that in mind, he headed for his living quarters, not taking too long since they were close by, and stood outside of the door momentarily. Fury was still running through his system and he needed to calm down somewhat so that he didn't do anything to harm Leia.

He tried to focus on controlling his fury but stopped when he felt the girl's fear transform into terror. At that moment, his fury was overcome by worry and he quickly headed for where she was sleeping, finding her tiny sleeping form tossing with tears rolling down her cheeks.

Another nightmare.

Vader shook her awake, and her teary eyes opened in realization before she hugged him tightly.

"What's the matter Leia?"

"I'm scared," she cried, "I don't want to be all alone! I don't want you to leave me too!"

"I won't leave."

"B-But you said you were sick! What if something happens?!"

Vader rubbed her back and pulled her a bit closer. It made sense that she was afraid of abandonment, however, he found it odd that she was so attached to him. Could it be that she felt the same connection he did?

"Leia, I promise that you won't be alone," he assured, "I **am** sick, but it isn't something that can kill me."

She looked at him slowly, tears still rolling down her round cheeks, "R-Really?"

"Yes really," he rubbed her head fondly, "I told you already, I am the strongest person in the galaxy. I'm going to live for a very long time."

"Even to fifty four?"

Vader found it hard not to smile at that, it was probably one of the highest numbers she knew.

"Yes, I will even live more than fifty four."

Leia smiled, satisfied with the answer, and hugged him tightly. Vader allowed the hug for a few moments before he gently pushed her away, earning a confused look.

"We will be leaving the ship in a couple of hours."

Her eyes lit up, "Really? Where are we going?"

He tried not to sound bitter, "Naboo."

"Naboo?" She cocked her head to the side, "Is it pretty?"

"Very," he answered. "We're going to stay there for two weeks."

She smiled, "Am I going to school there?"

"No, not yet. I will find a school for you to attend in another planet. For the time being, you will continue your lessons with E-3PO."

"He talks funny."

"Indeed."

"Oh! Mr. Vader did you know that the Empire was made four years ago?!"

"Really? You are very smart Leia."

Leia giggled at his praise and proceeded to state the things she'd learned which, to his surprise, where all correct. He half-expected to need to correct her at some point, but it appeared that she took every bit of information quite easily.

For some reason, he felt proud.


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow, once again thank you guys for the support. I'm really glad you're liking the story. I hope you like this chapter too.**

 **Remembrance**

 **Chapter 3**

On board one of his personal ships; this one with a cockpit and a living area with two bedrooms, one of which had been taken apart to fit his hyperbaric chamber, a kitchen, and a restroom, Darth Vader and Leia were on their way to Naboo.

The planet was quite far from where they were, but his personally modified ship would not take as long as a normal ship. While the trip would take between four, if the ship was fast, to seven days, his ship could make the trip in two. Of course, there were some parts on his ship that would be considered legal were he not the second most powerful man in the galaxy.

"Are we going to see a lot of planets?" Leia asked, sitting next to Vader in the cockpit safely strapped in her seat.

"Not unless we want our trip to last hundreds of years," he answered while pushing a couple of buttons and placing a hand on a lever. "Now hang on."

She nodded but let out a startled yelp when feeling a strong pull on her body as the stars transformed into blue blurs. The sensation didn't last long, and she looked at Darth Vader with a surprised expression, "What happened?"

"We entered light speed," he explained, "You may take the straps off now."

"Mr. Vader?"

He fought the urge to groan, she probably had another question for him.

"What is it?"

Leia took the straps off and looked at him strangely. Vader was confused by this and used the Force to look into her emotions, finding worry to be the most prominent.

"Mr. Vader, why are so sad?"

"Sad?" He repeated, finding the question ludicrous, "I am not sad."

She bit her lip, "But sometimes you are, I can feel it."

" _Feel_ it?"

Her brow furrowed as if he was not making any sense, "Yes. Everyone can feel what other people feel. I can tell that you get sad sometimes."

Vader did not like the sound of this. It was true that he could feel her presence but he never looked too far into it, not wanting to feel the light radiating off of her. However, this time he did not care, he _had_ to confirm his suspicion so that additional methods could be taken to keep her hidden.

He closed his eyes and concentrated on her blinding presence and felt his heart drop when his fears were realized. She was strong in the Force. **Very** strong in the Force. Other than his Master and Yoda, he had never felt someone so strong in it.

"Mr. Vader?" Leia looked at him closely, one of her eye brows slightly raised and her brow furrowed in concern. It was a look he had seen before, when _she_ was trying to pry something that was worrying him that he wouldn't tell her, _she_ had been very good at getting him to open up.

Why did Leia remind him so much of _her_? Her hair and eyes were exactly the same shade, even her facial features were similar but a little different.

They couldn't be related, could they? Even if they were, there was no one other than the Emperor and Yoda that was so strong...

A shudder ran down his spine as realization dawned on him.

No. It couldn't be.

Padmé had died along with the baby inside of her.

But what if she didn't?

She and Bail had been friends. Leia has said that her real mother died. This, along with how strong she was in the Force, made his realization hard to contradict.

"Mr. Vader?"

He was snapped out of his thoughts when he felt her tiny hands move his right arm.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." He realized that he must have been silent for a long time.

"D-Did I do something wrong? Are you angry I asked if you were sad?"

"Of course not."

A smile slowly formed on his face as he looked at her. Even without a blood test he could tell. The connection he had felt when they met, the way the Force seemed to cry out when he was with her. Now that he knew what to look for he found it easily, the reason for their connection. He couldn't believe how stupid he was.

He felt a tear roll down his cheek. Leia looked so much like Padmé, she even looked like a tiny senator sometimes.

Even after being burned alive, he felt grateful. Incredibly grateful that a piece of Padmé still lived. That **their** child lived.

Vader composed himself, he needed to tell Leia.

"Leia, I have something very important to tell you."

Her eyes went wide with fear, "Are you hurt?!"

"I'm not," he almost laughed. She was such a worrywart. "There is no simple way of telling you this, but I am your father. Your real father."

Leia seemed shocked at first, but when she took a brief moment to _feel_ and think, she looked at him carefully, "R-really?"

"You must have felt it when we met. Even now you must feel a connection to me. Tell me Leia, what did you feel when we first met?"

"I felt...scared at first because I was all alone," Leia said, "But then...but then I wasn't scared. I felt that I was safe." Her eyes glimmered with tears, "That you would protect me."

"Follow your feelings Leia, they will show you the answer."

She nodded slowly and followed his advice.

"I knew I was safe because..." she trailed off as a smile slowly spread across her face, "You're my real daddy."

A brief moment passed before she jumped off her chair and Vader bent down from his seat to pick her up and hug her firmly against him, her head on his shoulder. Tears rolled down his face, a clear sign of weakness, but one he did not care for at the moment. His child lived. The proof of love between him and his wife remained. Sith and Jedi be damned, the only thing that mattered was wrapped in his arms.

* * *

Inside an old hut somewhere in the desert planet of Tatooine, Obi-Wan barely managed to keep sitting upright. He had been on edge when he felt Vader coming closer and closer, but he never expected for his dark presence to suddenly spark with light.

His hands shook, even minutes later, the change was still there.

"The Force is moving things along once again," came Qui-Gon's voice as he slowly materialized with a blue glow.

"What do you mean Master?"

Qui-Gon smiled, "The Force works in mysterious ways... I feel that Anakin is slowly returning."

"But that's impossible," Obi-Wan countered, mostly because he desperately did not want to believe it could happen. He couldn't let himself hope that his brother would come back.

"Is it? Anakin has always been different. Maybe it was his destiny to touch both sides of the Force to bring balance one day."

"Master," he began in a tired voice that betrayed his age, "It's irresponsible of us to assume Anakin will return. Just as it was to force him to adapt to our ways."

Qui-Gon shook his head with a small smile, "Even after all these years you still have much fear. I know that what happened to Anakin destroyed you, but you will have to play a part in bringing him back."

"Even if I believed you, what happened between us cannot be fixed."

"Believe in the Force Obi-Wan, it will guide you. One day, I'm sure that it will call onto you for help. I hope you can answer its call."

Obi-Wan said nothing as his Master disappeared.

* * *

"Daddy look!" Leia cried out happily as she rushed to her father's side with a picture in her grasp. "I drew you a new picture!"

Vader smiled underneath his mask, and turned his chair to take the paper. It was a drawing of a smiling Leia holding his hand, the word 'daddy' was written under his picture.

"This is very good Leia," he said, earning a giggle and a grin.

"I'm going to draw lots when we go to the new planet."

"We will find you some new clothes first."

Leia beamed, "Can I get black clothes like you?"

"Maybe a few, Naboo is warmer than Alderaan so you wouldn't want to wear black."

"What about you Daddy? Why don't you get a new yellow suit?"

"Yellow?"

He'd die before he got stuck looking anything like 3-PO.

"I'm fine with my clothes as they are."

"But you said it's going to be hot there?"

"Not for me. I used to live in very warm planet," he explained.

"Can we go there too? To your planet? Maybe we could see where you lived!"

He tried not to think too much of her words to avoid any bad memories. Both Naboo and Tatooine brought a lot of bad memories.

"Maybe one day," he decided to humor her for now.

Leia smiled, "Hey Daddy, how long until we get there?"

"We just left a couple of hours ago, so we should get there tomorrow."

She pouted, "I'm bored, can we play something?"

Never mind the fact that he didn't know any kid games, they couldn't move around too much since the ship, while big enough to house them, did not have a lot of running room.

"What kind of game do you have in mind?"

"I don't know... Oh! Make things fly around again!"

A chuckle escaped his lips, "Very well."

* * *

Darth Vader let out a groan once the mask was off.

He was in his hyperbaric chamber after putting Leia to bed. Today had been one of the happiest days of his life, he found out the daughter he thought dead was alive, and he was together with her. After he had lost everything four years ago, he had something worth living for once again.

However, he had to put his happiness in check. If his Master caught wind of it he would become suspicious which is why he needed to meditate. To immerse himself in the Dark Side once again.

It came extremely easily.

He only needed to think of one thing to be consumed by hatred.

Sidious had lied to him. Padmé did not die by his hand, she had died at some point after their confrontation. The fact brought him great relief and an immense amount of hatred for his Master.

As long as _he_ lived, he had to keep Leia hidden. There was a small possibility that Sidious wouldn't kill Leia but he would surely try to turn her at some point. Vader swore to himself that it would never happen, he couldn't – **wouldn't –** let Leia end up like him.

The Emperor needed to die, but he didn't have the power to do so. As long as he was stuck in the suit, he would never be able to kill his Master, who knew that perfectly. During their brief training sessions, Palpatine's Force lightning had had a devastating effect on his suit, rendering it inoperative. He needed to find a way to combat that.

Vader relaxed his body, feeling the Dark Side coursing through his body once again.

He would pay a spy to look into it for him, a way to make his suit more powerful or to get rid of it all-together. After finding out that Padmé had not died by his hand, he had a hard time trusting his Master when he said that his suit was made with the most advanced materials he could find.

One day Sidious would pay.

* * *

Locked in his room while Leia studied with E-3PO, Darth Vader stood with his arms crossed as the hologram of a man wearing a white full-face helmet appeared at a projector he had in the middle of the room.

"At your service Milord," the man spoke in a gruff voice that revealed him to be at least forty.

"I want some information found with the utmost discretion. No one is to know we even spoke."

"Understood."

"Your task is to find me the best medcenters in the galaxy. Skin repair, internal organ repair, synthetic limbs; I want anything to do with them. Exclude any medcenter on Coruscant or other planets with a large Imperial base," Vader paused, "Funds will be transferred periodically every week starting today, and you'll receive a bonus for any information I deem important. You will need to report to me at the end of every week, failure to do so will result in death. Understood?"

"Yes Milord," the man nodded.

"That will be all," Vader said before ending the transmission.

It seemed that the things he needed to get done were piling up. Even though he hated the thought of going to Naboo, the two weeks off came at just the right time. As soon as they landed, he needed to get a room ready for Leia, buy her some new clothes and anything she might want. He was also starting to think that he needed to find her a nanny for when he had to leave for long periods of times.

He hated the thought of leaving her with some stranger, but he also didn't want to take her with him on missions. They took prisoners sometimes and he didn't want her anywhere near where he interrogated rebels.

Vader tried not to groan at how difficult it would be to find someone suitable, and left the room. They would be at Naboo shortly. With that in mind he entered Leia's room. She had been listening to something the droid was saying, but stopped to look at him when she heard him walk in.

"Come, we'll be able to see the planet from the cockpit."

She smiled and followed after him, sitting on the seat next to his as he safely strapped her in before going back to the controls.

Vader grinned when he saw the eagerness on her face before he finally pulled a lever and the ship left light speed.

"There it is Daddy!" Leia let out with an excited smile while pointing at the planet. "It looks like Alderaan!"

"Indeed, but wait until we land. I'm sure it will be quite different."

Soon the ship entered the planet and he flew intentionally low so that Leia could get a good look at the cities. Unlike the buildings in Alderaan that were rather slick, Naboo's were more grand.

"Wow, it's so pretty here!"

He smiled despite the memories flashing through his mind. They still hurt but thankfully Leia was with him and he was able to focus on her innocent awe instead. Just seeing her look at her mother's home so happily was enough to push the pain away.

Once he thought that they had enough, he sped up and headed for the coordinates. It didn't take him long to fly over a couple of crystal clear lakes and spot the place. It wasn't grand enough to be called a palace like his Master had said, but it was still well above average.

It was at the edge of a lake surrounded by mountains, it reminded him of the place where he married Padmé.

"Daddy?"

He turned to see Leia looking at him sadly.

"You're sad again."

Vader quickly composed himself, "I'm fine, don't worry Leia."

He could feel her eyes on him but he focused on the ship instead. There was a landing platform on the building and he easily touched down on it before powering down the ship.

"Come Leia."

She was looking at him carefully, trying to get a feel of his emotions again, and smiled when she noticed that he wasn't sad anymore. As Vader began to walk away, she caught up to him and held his hand, trying in her own way to make it so he wasn't sad anymore.

The ship opened and the two stepped out, Leia openly showing her awe. She took in as much as she could as Vader led her into the building, which was already furnished and painted in warm colors, something he was not expecting from a 'gift' from the Emperor. The old man probably thought that it would drive Vader insane, but while it may have been true before, he was glad that Leia didn't need to be surrounded by gloomy colors.

"Let's find you an acceptable room," Vader said as he led Leia through the house.

"Can I have a room where I can see the water?" Leia asked hopefully.

"Of course, do not hesitate to tell me if you need anything."

"What does hesitate mean?"

"It means that you should not worry about asking me for anything."

The two turned a corner on a hallway that had a wall made of a strong clear material that gave a perfect view of a large garden in the center of the house. There were a couple of open doors in the hallway that revealed two large rooms next to each other. One of them had two large doors with windows which led to a balcony that overlooked the lake.

"C-Can I have this room Daddy?" Leia asked a bit shyly.

 _'Ani, I want to have our baby back home on Naboo. We could go to the Lake Country where no one would know, where we would be safe. I could go early and fix up the baby's room. I know the perfect spot, right by the gardens.'_

Vader felt a small hand latch onto his and looked down to see Leia looking at him with tears sliding down her cheeks.

"W-Why..." It wasn't until he talked that he realized he was choked up. He composed himself and let out a brief chuckle as he gently wiped her tears away, "Why are you crying?"

"Because..." she hiccuped, "Because you're really sad Daddy."

He smiled and gently ruffled her hair, "I was just remembering your mother."

"My mommy?" Leia repeated with a look of realization.

"I will tell you more about her one day, just...not now."

She could feel another wave of sadness and nodded, "Okay."

He smiled and wiped away the last of her tears, "I'm going to make a couple of calls, you can stay here if you wish."

Leia shook her head and gave a smile, "I'll stay with you."

"Once I'm done, we can look into getting you new clothes."

A comfortable silence settled between them but it didn't last too long.

"Oh! Why don't you get a red cape Daddy?!"


	4. Chapter 4

**I may sound like a broken record, but you guys are awesome. Thanks a lot for the support.**

 **Remembrance**

 **Chapter 4**

Ordering for the things he bought to be delivered; clothes, furniture, and toys for Leia, had been a bit more taxing than Darth Vader thought it would be at first. He couldn't walk into a shop to buy things like toys, so he asked to have them delivered but found that some places did not deliver. These sort of problem were usually handled by promising to go there personally to kill the insulting worker, but he couldn't do that as E-3PO was in charge of the orders. Instead, he offered a larger sum of money and they agreed to his demands easily. They arrived a couple of hours later.

E-3PO had greeted the deliverers and once they left, he and Leia walked to the front of the house where a couple of large crates had been left along with a couple of average sized boxes which he assumed had Leia's clothes. These crates could easily be pushed by the handles of the machine they were on, but his method was much easier.

Leia watched with a wide smile as the top of one of the crates came off and furniture floated out. She glanced at her father before looking back at the floating objects and cheering with an excited smile, unknowingly earning a smile from her father.

Vader had no trouble in sorting the furniture and other things with the help of the Force. It was a bit of a hassle to go to and from the room, but he was just about done in under an hour. During that time, Leia had stayed with him, watching in amazement as he worked.

"Daddy?"

"Yes?"

"You said you can make things float with something called the Force," she began with a confused expression, "But what is that?"

Vader took a brief moment to think. He felt it was too early to give her a complex explanation, so he tried to word it so it wouldn't confuse her.

"The Force is much like air, in that it is around us. Some people are born with the power to control it and use it to move things like I do."

"Then, can I do that too? Move things!"

He couldn't help but smile at the look of excitement on her face, "Yes, you can."

"Can you teach me?! I want to move things too!"

"I'm sorry Leia, but that will have to wait until you're a little older," Vader said. Leia became visually annoyed and he raised an eye brow in amusement. He had never seen her act like this before.

"It's not fair Daddy. Why do I have to wait? I'm super smart and I'll be a grown up soon."

"Then we'll wait until then."

Her eyes went wide, "I lied. I'm already a grown up."

"Oh?"

"Ask me any question and I'll answer it right!"

"Very well then."

She put on a determined expression, her tiny hands balled into fists as her eyes bore into his mask.

"How do you use the Force to move things?"

Her expression fell and her brow furrowed in anger, "That's cheating!"

"A grown up could answer that question easily."

She crossed her arms and sulked.

A chuckle escaped his lips, finding her indignation adorable, "I can't teach you that just yet, but I'll do anything you want today in exchange."

"Anything?" Leia asked, her eyes slightly narrowed in suspicion. When he nodded, she grinned, "Okay, you have to play with me today! All day! Even when it's night!"

"Fine."

She beamed and pushed him so that he was facing away from the door, "Don't turn around, okay?" He didn't say anything but when she saw that he wasn't moving, she nodded to herself. "I'm going to go hide and you have to find me, count until...fifty four!"

Vader smiled fondly as he heard his daughter leaving the room in a rush.

* * *

It was dark in Naboo. A lone cargo ship flew relatively close to the ground, using the tall mountains to remain hidden, until it touched down on a small clearing.

The ship's doors opened slowly and a small troop of Rebels emerged, all dressed in camouflaged green jackets and pants, along with dark green backpacks, blasters hung at their hips.

They spread out and made a line as a cloaked figure walked out of the ship, a hood covering any trace of features.

Words did not need to be exchanged, they all knew why they were here. So they exchanged looks and once the cloaked figure nodded, they moved out. All of them kept silent as they walked through the many trees on the hill they had landed on. It wasn't long until they could see a lone palace in the distance.

Tonight, Darth Vader would pay for his crimes.

* * *

It wasn't often that Darth Vader felt he was being overwhelmed but when he was, he desperately tried to get rest.

He had gotten some workers from an Imperial Center to set up a hyperbaric chamber for him to rest. Luckily they did not take too long to set up as almost every medcenter had them.

Once his mask had come off, he had groaned and leaned back on his seat.

Sleep never came easy for him. It was near impossible to sleep in his suit, and when he came to the hyperbaric chamber to rest, the spots where his skin met the sharp metal of his suit ached unbearably. If by some miracle he managed to find rest under the pain, he was plagued by nightmares of his old life.

Even so, he closed his eyes and tried to get some rest. He did not want to be in a sour mood around Leia.

* * *

Clutching an Ewok plush toy while tucked safely under a thin blanket, Leia stirred from her sleep when she began to hear strange noises. At first she thought it was nothing, but when she heard something snap, she nervously sat up while clutching the toy to her chest. The door to the balcony was covered by a thick curtain so she couldn't see anything.

"Daddy..." she tried to call out to him in a small voice. A couple of tears trailed down her face as she closed her eyes and hugged the toy.

Suddenly the glass on the door of her balcony was shattered and two people entered her room with blasters pointed at her.

"DADDY!"

* * *

A wave of horror hit Vader.

His eyes snapped open, glowing fiercely as his hyperbaric chamber opened and he donned the mask once again.

Leia was in danger, he could feel it.

He rushed to her room, his breathing booming rapidly, and eyes turning yellow when he saw two men trying to drag his daughter away.

His daughter looked at him desperately with tears on her face, "Daddy! Help me!"

The two men looked at him in surprise, but Vader paid them no attention, his eyes were on the hand clasping his daughter's arm.

"GAH!" The Rebel holding Leia cried out when his arm snapped in several places and he staggered backwards in pain.

Leia took the opportunity to run to her father's side. She clutched his leg tightly, vaguely aware of E-3PO walking into the room after having heard all the commotion.

"Take Leia to my room. I will be there shortly," Vader commanded.

"But Daddy-"

"Go now!" He snapped while pushing Leia to the droid, who pulled her into Vader's room.

Vader's lightsaber hissed as he stared down the two horrified men that had dared break into his daughter's room.

The two stammered before drawing their blasters, pistol in the case of the man with the broken hand, and firing in hopes of killing the Sith Lord, who easily reflected their shots before pulling one of them to him and impaling him with his lightsaber.

"You blasted droid!" The other Rebel yelled while firing desperately.

Darth Vader blocked the shots with his blade before using it to cut the blaster in half, and hold the man in the air with the Force.

"Y-You will never make me talk!"

Vader said nothing and gripped the man's head tightly, earning a groan that then turned into a scream when the Sith Lord forcefully tore through his mind to look for information. Usually he would have kept on going until there was nothing left to find, but he was forced to drop the man when he found out that there were more of them nearby.

Knowing that he could not put Leia at risk, he quickly disposed of the man and headed back to his room where he found his scared daughter still being held by E-3PO. She visually relaxed when she saw him, having been afraid that something might happen to him.

"We have to leave now Leia. There is no time to take anything," he held her up with his left arm, his lightsaber held on his right hand. "Stay here E-3PO. If they capture you, self-destruct."

"Understood Lord Vader."

He was already out of the room before he heard the answer. Time was of the essence and the longer he stayed, the more Leia would be in danger. They needed to leave as soon as possible but he knew better than to use his ship, which was probably already rigged with explosives.

Luckily there was a spare speeder in the building's garage. While it wasn't a sure thing that they had tampered with it, he could find any foreign device on it much easier and faster than he would his ship.

His senses were as sharp as they could be as he drew into the Force.

There were two people in the upper room, while another two were circling the building outside. Good, it didn't seem like they had entered the garage there.

Vader quickly went down a spiral staircase and was finally in the garage that lit up as soon as it sensed his movement. The speeder, big enough for two, did not appear to be tampered with. There was a small problem in that he did not have the controls for the door, but he could easily open it with the Force.

"Don't be afraid Leia," he said while strapping her into her seat and taking his own seat, "We will be going somewhere safe now."

She nodded slowly, her tiny hand gripping his cape while the other held the plush toy.

Vader started the speeder, opened the garage door with the Force, almost breaking it out of its hinges, and sped out of the building as fast as he could. He knew he had alerted the intruders but it did not matter as he had already put a comfortable distance between him and the building.

He didn't bother trying to maneuver through the trees and instead flew through the lake. It would lead him to town but then what? He couldn't be seen with Leia, his Master would find out immediately.

So how would he acquire a ship?

There was no one he could leave Leia with while he found a suitable ship.

…

Or was there?

He bit his lip, something he hadn't done in years. There was no doubt that he would be struck by truly painful memories if he really did what he had in mind but...

No. It did not matter. Leia came first. He would do anything to keep her safe, even if it meant facing his past.

He had to keep her safe, and _they_ were the only ones he trusted with Leia.

* * *

Leia had fallen asleep a little under an hour ago.

Vader had taken alternate routes to avoid being spotted from the air, he had to be careful at first but when he finally entered the city after two hours of travel, he did not need to hide. The grand buildings were enough to hide him in the shadows as he had the foresight to drive with the lights off, instead relying on the Force to avoid crashing.

He hadn't been to this part of Naboo in a very long time. Even after they married, their lives made it hard to share their secret.

Vader stopped the speeder and closed his eyes to use the Force. There was not such a thing as too careful.

Once he made sure no one was following them, he got out and took Leia in his arms. She fidgeted slightly but rested her head on his shoulder and sighed as he walked to the front door of the Naberrie's.

What was he going to tell them? He found it hard to believe that they would simply take care of a stranger's daughter, never mind the fact that they would probably tell someone that Vader had come to them in the middle of the night and asked them to take care of his secret daughter. No. That would not do. He briefly played with the idea of telling them that she was Padmé's daughter, but dismissed it almost immediately. If he told them that, then they would not give her away to some stranger.

Vader realized there was only one thing he could do and knocked loud enough to be heard on the door but was met with silence. This was expected, it was the middle of the night, so he tried again.

A few minutes later he heard movement inside until the door finally creaked opened and he was met by the startled gaze of Ruwee Naberrie.

"L-Lord Vader?"

"I need to speak with you."

The man frowned in worry until he noticed the child in the Dark Lord's arms and his expression turned to that of bewilderment.

"I uh... Yes, I'll hear you out," Ruwee said.

"It would be for the best if we spoke inside. There are some people after me," Vader said while trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice. There were people after them, he couldn't have a casual chat out in the open. When he noticed that Ruwee was still deciding on whether or not to let him in, he pushed, "These people could very well hurt your family."

The old man's eyes widened in realization before he reluctantly stepped aside to let the Sith Lord into his home and closed the door behind them.

"Ruwee?" A woman stepped into the room and covered her mouth to keep from screaming in shock.

"Jobal, this is Lord Vader," he said while moving to stand at her side and grasp her shoulder, "You should go back to bed, I'll see what he wants to say."

"This concerns the two of you," Vader cut in.

"Daddy?"

Hearing the voice so close to her, Leia slowly woke up and looked up at him sleepily, "Where are we?"

Ruwee and Jobal stood there dumbfounded, unable to believe that the Dark Lord they kept on hearing so much about had a daughter.

"Don't worry Leia, you are safe," he said in what he hoped was a soothing voice.

"Okay..." she slurred as her eyes closed once again.

An awkward silence settled in the room, Ruwee and Jobal having no idea what was going on, while Vader was mentally preparing for what he was about to say.

"There is no simple way for me to tell you this. After all, you never knew about Padmé and I."

"Padmé and you?" Jobal looked at him with her eyes narrowed, "What do you mean by that?"

Vader remained quiet for a small moment, "I was not always called Darth Vader. Years ago, you two knew me. As Anakin Skywalker."

The two looked at him in shock.

"Y-You're Anakin?" Ruwee let out incredulously.

"Yes. Padmé and I married not long after we came here. We decided to keep it secret as our relationship could not be discovered. Even from you."

Jobal shook her head with tears in her eyes, "You lie. Padmé would have told us!"

Ruwee held his wife by the shoulders and looked at Vader with a steel gaze, "I knew both my daughter and Anakin, they were both heroes during the Clone Wars. There is no way that you are him. What are you trying to get out of feeding us these lies?"

Vader hated to rely on his daughter, but was left with no choice. "This is my daughter. Padmé's daughter," he set her down on a couch so that they could see her face.

Jobal brought her hands to her mouth, her eyes wide as tears stung her eyes. She looked just like Padmé did when she was a kid. There were some differences, but the resemblance was uncanny.

"Her name is Leia. She is four years old. Bail Organa hid her from me, and you as well," Vader explained.

Hearing her name, the small girl opened her eyes and looked between her father and the two strangers that almost flinched when her brown eyes met with theirs.

"These are your grandparents Leia."

"My grandparents?" She repeated in surprise.

Whatever doubt Jobal had was silenced when she saw Leia's eyes. She had seen those exact eyes whenever she was with her daughter. When she had passed away, Jobal had been crushed. Nothing could compare with the pain of losing her daughter, that's why when she looked at the little girl's eyes, she was struck with emotion. There was no denying it, Leia was Padmé's child.

"My name is Jobal," she smiled while wiping away her tears, "It's nice to meet you Leia."

"And I'm Ruwee," he added, while trying not to be overwhelmed by emotion.

"Oh," Leia let out when she realized that she had not greeted them properly yet. She stood up and dropped into a curtsy, "It is lovely to meet you."

Vader couldn't keep from smiling at that, she probably learned that in Alderaan seeing as she was its princess.

Jobal laughed softly and moved to hug the girl, who while surprised at first returned the hug. Ruwee joined in and Leia giggled at the attention.

Vader watched the scene silently. A sad smile formed on his face and he wondered how this meeting would have gone if Padmé was still alive.


	5. Chapter 5

**Remembrance**

 **Chapter 5**

Vader's cape fluttered wildly with the wind as he drove a speeder as fast as he could.

After putting Leia to sleep in a guest room in her grandparents home, he had immediately left the home to avoid leading anyone there. It was just a precaution since he was sure the Rebels were not looking for him yet. They had only broken into his house a couple of hours ago and he was sure they were taking everything apart in an effort to get information on the Empire. Those fools would find nothing as any delicate information was in his personal flagship.

In any case, this had to end tonight. They had most likely seen Leia's room already and he could not let any of them leave with that information.

As he drew power from the Dark Side, Vader spotted the house in the distance and pushed the speeder to move even faster. He wasn't one to sneak around so he headed straight for the main entrance where a couple of Rebels were standing guard. They noticed him easily and began to fire but it was too late as he jumped out of the moving speeder and separated their heads from their bodies with his hissing lightsaber. The bodies hit the ground just as the speeder crashed into the house and blasted a large hole open with a powerful explosion.

Counting the ones that had broken into Leia's room, this marked four dead Rebels. If he remembered correctly, he had sensed four presences in the house after killing the first two, which meant that there should be at least two more somewhere.

As if to confirm his belief, a couple of Rebels shot at him from a balcony. He easily blocked the first couple of shots and then used the Force to pull them off the balcony, causing them to fall two stories and cry out in pain. Their legs didn't appear to be broken, but he made sure to fix that by stomping on their legs, earning a couple of pain-filled screams.

"Tell me, how did you find me here?" He asked but received no answer. "Very well, I'll ask again," he jabbed them a couple of times with his lightsaber, "Now talk."

"We...got word that you would be here without guards..." One of the Rebels gasped out in pain, "...and that you were hurt."

"Oh, and where did you get this information?" Vader asked while using the tip of his lightsaber to burn a line down one of the Rebel's leg.

"I-It got leaked. One of our spies told us."

Vader took in the information while keeping in mind that the other Rebel did not once open his mouth. It seemed that this other Rebel was useless. With that in mind, he raised his lightsaber intending to kill him.

"That's enough!"

Vader looked up when he heard the voice coming from above, and noticed a hooded figure standing on the roof of the three story building. His eyes narrowed when he felt a strong Force signature from the person.

"A Jedi," he spat, "I was sure they would send one with these pathetic Rebels." When he said that, he used his left hand to choke the life out of them.

"You won't get away with this," the Jedi said.

Vader shrugged, "It was you who came to attack me. I would say you are foolish, but that would be putting it lightly."

The Jedi pulled out a couple of lightsabers and ignited their white blades, before holding them in a reverse grip. Vader stood in place, his lightsaber held with two hands as he was expecting the Jedi to jump down.

As he expected, the Jedi jumped down while swinging downwards with the two blades, but he easily blocked by slashing upwards with full force. Their blades locked with a loud hiss, before the Jedi used the momentum from the fall to kick Vader in the chest and jump away.

Vader hardly felt the kick and stood in place, deciding to test the patience of the Jedi, who appeared young. They were usually very quick to go on the offensive.

Once again, just as he thought, the Jedi sprinted towards him while holding both blades back and swinging once they were close enough. He blocked them by raising his lightsaber with one hand, took a step back, and leaned out of the way as the Jedi attempted a stab. This left the Jedi defenseless and he used the opportunity to knock one of the lightsabers away by swinging as fast as he could, causing the Jedi to block before the lightsaber sailed through the air.

The hooded Jedi moved back and extended a hand towards the lightsaber, but Vader used the Force to snatch it away just as it was floating to the Jedi.

"Your powers are weak," Vader said, "It seems weak Jedi can only train other weak Jedi."

With a growl, the Jedi ran forward and tried to hit the Sith Lord in any way. However, the Jedi learned that despite being somewhat slow, Vader was deathly precise in both blocking and leaning **just** out of reach.

If that was the case, then maybe Force attacks would work out better.

The Jedi took a step back and attempted a Force Push, but Vader was one step ahead and used his own to knock his enemy away. Despite knowing that Vader was very powerful, the Jedi had never expected for there to be such a difference between them, he was much more powerful and skilled than any other Dark Side user the Jedi had faced.

Vader smirked under his mask and looked at the lightsaber he took from the Jedi with a critical eye. It was actually well put together.

Panting slightly, the Jedi noticed Vader was distracted and used the opportunity to run at him while attempting a horizontal slash. Without even looking up from the lightsaber, Vader blocked the attack with one hand.

"You have _some_ promise, but are pathetically weak," Vader dropped the lightsaber on the ground and use a Force Push with his left hand to sent his opponent flying back.

Darth Vader narrowed his eyes as he watched the Jedi slam against a wall.

His last attack had caused the hood to uncover the Jedi's face. He had expected the terrified gaze of some young Jedi trying to play hero, but he never expected for the face of his old apprentice to be revealed.

"Ahsoka."

Her eyes hardened when she heard the name. "Darth Vader," she spat while standing up and holding her lightsaber, ready to attack.

"You have grown," he observed, causing her to look at him in confusion.

While his voice sounded calm, he had no idea what to do. A few days ago he would have killed her on the spot. However, even though he hated to admit it, meeting Leia and realizing that she was his daughter had changed things.

"Your attempts at confusing me won't work," she cautioned.

He remained quiet, hundreds of thoughts racing through his mind, some of which weighed heavily on him. Ever since he began to hide Leia's Force signature, their bond had become stronger. Her ability to feel his emotions had grown more powerful which meant that, if he killed someone that had been close to him at one point, like Ahsoka, she would feel him sink much more to the Dark Side.

In other words, Leia would feel the Dark Side, and he wanted to prevent that at all costs.

Vader would not let Leia see or feel that side of him. He could not live with himself if he broke what they had.

So, he decided to reason with Ahsoka, maybe there was a way for her to stop attacking.

"Tell me something," he began, causing her to glare at him, "Do you recall when I used to call you _Snips_?"

For a brief moment, her expression showed shock, before her glare became even more intense, "When _you_ called me Snips? You have to be desperate to pretend to be my Master."

They circled each other, neither attempting to attack, just yet in Ahsoka's case.

"There is no trickery here. **I** am your Master."

"You're lying!"

"Use the Force to see for yourself, our bond is still there."

Ahsoka followed his advice, searching for what definitely was not there, only to step back as her face twisted in horror.

"No... That can't be true!"

"You have grown stronger Ahsoka, but you still have much to learn," Vader began, "Let me complete what I started years ago. Join me."

Her eyes narrowed, "I will never join the Dark Side! Even if you really are Anakin!"

"I'm not asking you to turn, all I need is for you to lend me your strength."

"For what?" She smiled bitterly, "So that I can help you kill innocent people?"

"To kill the Emperor."

"What?" For the first time that night, she was speechless. Just what was he saying?

Vader turned off his lightsaber to prove he did not want to fight her. "A lot has happened this past few days, enough to get me to think about myself rather than the Empire or the Emperor," he let his shields down just enough for her to see that he was being truthful, "I couldn't care less about the Empire anymore. Only one thing matters to me now, and I will not fail it."

"Then why did you kill them?" Ahsoka argued.

"They threatened the only thing that matters in my life. Whoever does that will die, regardless of who they are," he put his lightsaber away, "That is why I need your help. I cannot kill the Emperor alone."

Ahsoka stayed quiet for a moment, "Let's pretend I listen to what you're saying. Why do you want to kill the Emperor?"

"Because his very existence threatens what I want to protect," he paused, "Do not trust _me._ Trust in my honest desire to kill him."

She frowned deeply. Nothing could have prepared her for this. First she finds out that Darth Vader is actually her old Master, someone who she was close to and respected greatly, and then she learns that he wants to kill the Emperor. She would not have believed it if the Force hadn't shown her that he was being truthful. But that still left one question.

"What happens once you kill the Emperor?"

Darth Vader thought about the question before answering as honestly as he could, "Nothing. Once he is dead, I will not seek to control the Empire if that is what you were implying."

"Why?"

"Why what?"

She clenched her fists, "Why did you change so suddenly?! Why do I feel the Light Side inside of you?!"

"If you decide to help me, I will let you see for yourself."

"See what?"

"See the person that gave my life purpose again."

* * *

There were no words exchanged by Vader or Ahsoka as they stood outside the Naberrie's home after he had knocked a couple of times.

Ahsoka still had no idea why she had followed him, but was glad that they were at least going to a home instead of an Imperial Center. She had been told countless times to follow the will of the Force but this time she was really questioning her decision to do so.

The door to the home opened and Ruwee looked between them, as if asking who she was.

"She's fine."

The older man nodded and let them in. Ahsoka stepped inside carefully, her instincts on high alert, but it really did appear to be a normal home. She felt no trace of the Dark Side in it.

What was Vader doing at a place like this?

"I'll be in my room, call me if you need anything," Ruwee said before leaving.

"Follow me," Vader said as he led her to a hallway with a couple of windows that had a view of a large garden.

"You may have not known this," he began as the two walked, "But I got married at the beginning of the Clone Wars."

Ahsoka's suspicious expression was replaced by one of shock, "You were?"

"Indeed."

She furrowed her brow, silently wondering who he was married to until something hit her, "You were married to Senator Amidala."

He nodded and stopped in front of a door, "The Jedi would not approve of it, and she had her political life, a scandal of that scale would have put her out of office. That is why we decided to keep it secret."

A silent passed between them.

"She...died, at the end of the Clone Wars," he opened the door and she followed him, still with no clue as to what he wanted to show her.

Ahsoka looked around the room silently until her eyes landed on a small girl sleeping. The girl had long brown hair and she seemed really familiar... She turned her gaze to Vader, realization on her face.

"This is my daughter, Leia."

"I see," it was the only thing she could say while looking between the two of them, her thoughts racing rapidly. "So when you said you wanted to protect something from the Emperor, you were talking about her."

"Precisely. If the Emperor finds out I have a daughter, he will either kill her or turn her to the Dark Side," he clenched his fists, "I will not allow either."

Ahsoka took in the information quietly, sensing how honest he was being. With his help, maybe they could stop the Emperor for good. But was she about to trust someone like him? No, she couldn't. But at the same time she could not afford to refuse the help of someone with so much knowledge on the Empire. If he wanted her help, then it would have to be on her terms.

"Let's make a deal then."

She received no answer other than his loud breathing, which she took as a sign to continue.

"I will help you fight the Emperor, but in exchange, you will let the Rebel Alliance take control and make a new republic."

Darth Vader did not like either of those things, but as long as Leia was safe he could deal with it.

"Anything else?"

"Yes. You have to give us inside information on the Empire. If we want to kill the Emperor, then we'll need to take the fight to him."

"Very well, but I also have one condition," Vader said.

Ahsoka didn't like the sound of it, "What is it?"

"You will come live with me and Leia."

"What?" She let out incredulously.

"I am not able to be with her at all times, I need someone that can shield her from the Emperor while I am away. There are no other Force users I can trust."

Ahsoka could see his point and, glancing at the sleeping child, she didn't want to image what would happen were she to be caught by the Emperor.

"It will also make it easier to train you."

"I told you I'm not turning to the Dark Side."

"And I told you that that is not my objective. As you are now, you will be of little help against the Emperor. There wouldn't be a point to our alliance if that were the case."

Ahsoka frowned deeply, "Fine, but I want the chance to leave every once in a while."

"That sounds fair, but let me give you a warning," Darth Vader's voice took a dark tone, "While I do need your help, if you are to inform the Rebels of my location or try anything against Leia, I will not hesitate to kill you."

She found it hard not to roll her eyes. He had always been like this, if anyone ever threatened those he cared about then he would turn into a murderous machine. Fine, she could do that. She wouldn't dream of ever doing anything that would put the life of a kid in danger.

"Okay, we have a deal."

* * *

When Ahsoka realized that there would be no sleeping after finding out such shocking revelations, she decided to go clear her head in the garden and meditate under a tree. She didn't know how long she had been sitting there, but she noticed that it was beginning to dawn when she opened her eyes. As it turned out, meditating had done little to help sort her thoughts.

Vader was strange, not that he wasn't strange back when he was a Jedi, but there definitely something weird going on. When she had fought him earlier, she had felt the Dark Side within him, but now it was barely present. In fact, ever since he took her to see Leia, she could feel the Light Side coming from him. While it wasn't as strong as when he was a Jedi, it was still very much present.

It was because of this that she decided to make a deal with him.

She only hoped that it wouldn't come to be her undoing.

* * *

Vader had stayed with Leia ever since he came back with Ahsoka.

Light was starting to peek through the curtains but he did not dare try to wake Leia. She had gone through something very traumatic, evidenced by the couple of nightmares she had, but he was thankfully there to use the Force to calm her down.

He crossed his arms while sitting on a chair at the corner of the room. This rare time of silence had given him the time to go over some things he didn't have the chance to ponder before. There had been something in the back of his head ever since he first saw Leia, but he never put too much thought into it.

However, there was no way for him to look away or deny it any longer.

He was confused.

Darth Vader would never feel the need to watch over a child. He would never betray everything he stood for in order to protect her, the thought of turning on the Empire would never even cross his mind. Most of all, he would never feel love when seeing his daughter smile at him and innocently tell him about things she liked.

If Darth Vader didn't do these things, then who did?

Had Anakin Skywalker returned?

No, he did not think so.

He felt more like he was stuck somewhere in-between.

Vader leaned his head back in a show of exhaustion. There would be time to really think about all of this later. Darth Vader or Anakin Skywalker. Neither mattered.

Right now he was who he needed to be, who he **must** be.

Leia's father.


	6. Chapter 6

**So the reason for no Author's Note at the beginning of the last chapter was because I was planning on releasing this chapter back to back with the last one, but my computer gave me troubles. Anyway, I would like to think all of you supporting the story, it means a lot and makes me want to bring out chapter quicker.**

 **Remembrance**

 **Chapter 6**

Vader stepped out of the Naberrie's home early in the morning to avoid having anyone see him. There were a couple of things he needed to do and could not afford to wait until it was night.

"Isn't it a little early for you to go out?"

He turned his head and noticed Ahsoka leaning against the wall of the house.

"There are some things I need attend to. It would be more convenient to leave now rather than later, I don't need for anyone making a connection between me and the Naberrie's."

"Because Palpatine would find out," she concluded, "Do you know where you're going after this?"

"I'm still not sure. However, acting out of character would alert Sidious immediately, so I have to play the part of submissive apprentice for now," he threw her a comlink without warning. "I will call once the damages to the house are fixed, at that time bring Leia back."

She frowned and said nothing as he left.

* * *

It was around noon when Vader knelt before the projection of his Master.

"What is thy bidding my Master?"

"Fake information on your whereabouts was leaked. Tell me, did you catch the Rebels?"

No doubt this _leak_ was deliberate, a way for Sidious to test him and gain information on the Rebels at the same time.

"Yes Master. I interrogated them and killed them most painfully."

Sidious smirked, "Very good. Did you come upon any useful information?"

"No. It seems these Rebels were nothing more than a troop of weak bounty hunters."

"A pity. You should relax on your time there. With your injuries, such commotion must have overwhelmed you."

Vader clenched his fists to the point where sparks were coming out of them.

Sensing the hatred in his apprentice, Sidious smirked once again, "Enjoy your two weeks."

With that the transmission was cut off and Vader stood up angrily, cursing under his breath. Sidious always knew how to belittle him, but that wouldn't last too long. Soon he would kill the old fool.

"Lord Vader," the timid voice of a young worker came through the intercom in the room, "We have finished the renovations."

"You are dismissed. I don't want to see any of you when I get out."

He cut the transmission and could hear the workers scrambling to get their supplies and leave.

* * *

Having been meditating in the garden for most of the morning, Ahsoka went to see how the others were doing. It was a bit awkward to be around people she did not know, much more so when they let her stay in their home, but if they were Senator Amidala's parents then they had to be good people.

With that in mind she entered the home and found them on the living room.

"Ah, you must be the guest from last night," Jobal smiled, "I'm sorry I couldn't greet you yesterday."

"Please don't worry about it, I'm the one who came unannounced. I can't thank you enough for your hospitality."

Ruwee chuckled, "Please, anyone who is watching over our granddaughter is more than welcome in this house. I'm Ruwee, and that's my wife Jobal. It's very nice to meet you."

"I'm Ahsoka Tano," she answered with a smile, "Where is little Leia?"

Jobal sighed, "In her room. She was eating breakfast with us until she found out Anakin left, she tried to get us to help her find him, but we have no idea where he went. After that she just went to her room and won't come out."

At that moment, Ahsoka's comlink went off, "Sorry I have to take this." She walked to the hallway leading to Leia's room, and answered.

"Ahsoka, you may bring Leia to the house now."

She frowned at his dismissive tone, "Care for a cup of bantha milk as well?"

"Sounds good. You can come retrieve the credits and then buy some after you bring Leia."

Ahsoka could almost see the smirk on his voice before the communication was cut off. He had to be crazy if he thought she would actually go, she had enough with convincing a little girl she'd never met to leave with her so that she could take her to her father.

She let out a brief sigh and entered Leia's room.

The little girl had been sitting on the bed hugging a plush toy and looked up at her in surprise.

"Hi little Leia, it's great to meet you. My name is Ahsoka," she tried to sound friendly but it didn't seem to work as Leia clutched the toy harder and backed away, almost fearfully. "No need to be scared little one, your father asked me to take you to him since he's too busy to come here himself."

"Daddy said that?" Leia asked, her face showing hesitation, "But he told me not to talk to strangers."

"You might not know me but your father..." Ahsoka paused briefly. "He's known me for a long time."

Leia pouted, still not sure if she should believe the lady, "Are you Daddy's friend?"

Ahsoka sighed, finding that it was getting harder and harder to avoid lying. Finally, she decided that a little lie would not hurt.

"Yes, he even taught me a lot of things some time ago."

Finally deciding that she was a good person, Leia smiled, "Are you really going to take me see Daddy?"

"Of course."

"That's good," Leia jumped down from the bed and nodded, "I have to go back quickly."

Ahsoka looked at the girl oddly, "Why's that? Did you need to ask him something?"

Leia shook her head, "I have to go take care of him. Daddy gets sad a lot, but he gets happy when I'm with him. That's why I have to go back quickly."

The Togruta found herself smiling, "Then let's go little lady."

* * *

Obi-Wan rubbed his beard in deep thought.

He had just found out through a holo that Senator Bail Organa had been killed. Of course he was saddened by the loss of someone he considered an ally, but the fate of Leia worried him much more. Apparently Vader himself had carried out the execution by storming the palace, if he was at such close proximity to an untrained child, then he should have felt her presence.

Was this why Vader was nearby? Did he find out about the twins?

No, that couldn't be true. Bail wouldn't talk, he hadn't even told his wife that Leia had a real family.

Then why?

He closed his eyes, using the Force to sense the Sith Lord. Once again, he was struck by countless questions. Vader's presence was simple to locate as always, but he could feel the Light Side in his Force signature.

At times like this he wished he could speak to Master Yoda in person, or another Jedi at all. Everything was clouded, the future uncertain. What was the best course of action here? Should he try to find Leia?

He couldn't. Not now. He was needed in Tatooine, the harsh desert planet was unforgiving and he couldn't afford to leave them alone for Vader to find.

Perhaps he should try to contact another Jedi to look into things on his stead. Last he heard, apparently Ahsoka had offered her help to the Rebels. He should probably look into finding out where she was.

* * *

As Ahsoka arrived at the house on one of the Naberrie's speeders with Leia, they both noticed Vader standing at the front door with his arms crossed.

No sooner than the speeder came to a halt, Leia threw open the door, her toy forgotten on her seat, and ran as fast as her little legs could to the Sith Lord. Ahsoka could hardly believe the sight of Vader kneeling down and spreading his arms to catch the little girl in a hug.

It was near impossible to ignore the darkness surrounding Vader disappearing almost completely, and she found herself thinking that maybe coming with them was not such a bad choice. Master Yoda had once said that a Jedi turning to the Dark Side was forever lost but, watching as Vader spun with the giggling girl in his arms, she got the feeling that perhaps it wasn't completely true.

"Why did you leave Daddy?" Leia asked once Vader put her down.

"I had to take care of some things and didn't want to wake you. How was your stay with your grandparents?"

Her eyes lit up, remembering something, "Grandma showed me a holo of Mommy! She was really pretty!"

"Indeed..." he trailed off, "She was."

"What's the plan now?" Ahsoka asked, noticing the drop in his mood.

"We quietly prepare," Vader answered, "Until I can find a way to defeat the Emperor, I must follow his orders. For now, the plan runs on the assumption that there is a way for me to get off this suit."

Having said that, he turned to enter the home. Leia was quick to grab one of his hands as Ahsoka followed after them.

"Daddy, am I going to see my grandparents again?"

"Of course, but they will have to come here."

Leia grinned, "Grandma made me something really good to eat, because I'm a really good girl."

"Is that so?"

She nodded, "And Grandpa said that I should meet my cousins."

Vader nodded, remembering the couple of girls he had seen running around back when he was escorting Padmé before the Clone Wars began.

"Hey Daddy, are you listening?" She broke him out of his thoughts and looked at him with a pout on her face.

"Of course I did."

"Then what did I say?"

"You said that you wanted to meet your cousins. That can be arranged in a couple of days. For now you should find E-3PO, he has been waiting to continue your lessons."

Leia looked up at him and stretched out her arms towards him. He took the hint and picked her up but didn't expect her to wrap her arms around his neck and bury her face at the side of his helmet. While he was surprised at first, he returned the hug and put her down before ruffling her hair fondly.

"Bye Daddy," she smiled and waved before running off to find E-3PO.

Vader watched her leave with a smile on his face and almost forgot that Ahsoka had been there until he noticed her giving her a weird grin.

"Big mighty Darth Vader sure loves his daughter."

"Shut up."

* * *

Night had fallen on Naboo once again.

Ahsoka had gone to her room on the second floor, while Vader put Leia to bed, which was easier said than done since she had been scared of sleeping there at first and refused to do so unless he was there with her. He complied since he hated to see her so scared. Were it not for the several security measures he had installed inside and outside her room, he would probably stay with her all night.

Now Vader walked into his room, fully intent on trying to find some much needed rest, but he was cut off when he noticed a message on his com.

Wishing that it wasn't from his Master, Vader played the message and was relieved to see that it was from the person he hired to look for information on medcenters.

"Lord Vader," the image of the man wearing a white helmet appeared, "I found something you might find interesting. Every time I searched for medcenters with skin and internal organ repair, I was pointed to Kamino. Since they've cloned millions of soldiers before, they mastered how to grow and harvest organs. It appears they only got better as time went on and word is that they were able to treat some of their injured soldiers that returned from war by placing cloned organs and even limbs into their bodies."

Vader was now very interested in what this man was saying.

"As I dug around for more information I found out that the Empire had shut the program down. However," the image of the man was replaced with that of a map of the galaxy, where a red dot blinked, "It turns out that some Kaminoans were not pleased with the Empire and fled to some aquatic planet in the Outer Rim. I have sent you the location. I'll be waiting for further orders sir."

Darth Vader ended the transmission, hardly believing what he had just heard. If they could really do something about his injuries, then he would be able to become powerful enough to kill the Emperor.

He tried desperately to calm himself down and think of when he should make the trip to see for himself, instead of the growing hope welling up in his chest. If the information was right, then he could be whole again.

As much as he wanted to avoid thinking about it, he couldn't help but wonder how it would be if he was able to breathe without the blasted mask. Finally he would be able to see and hear his daughter clearly. He could even kiss her goodnight instead of simply ruffling her hair.

Yes, he would look into this information immediately. Luckily, the old fool had given him enough time to slip away unnoticed.

It seemed he was looking into another sleepless night.

* * *

Darth Vader tried not to let his bad mood, caused by his lack of sleep, show while Leia ate breakfast with Ahsoka.

His daughter had grown a lot more comfortable with him and had started to be a bit more bold when it came to asking things of him. This time she asked if he could stay while they ate, to which he complied. Despite his lack of sleep, he enjoyed being with his daughter and hearing her go on and on was soothing.

"I think we should go play in the woods today," Leia said while putting her fork down. "There are a lot of places to hide there. We could even find something cool."

Ahsoka grimaced, not sure of how to tell the little girl that running around the woods was a bad idea. Apparently she didn't have to as Vader spoke.

"The woods are filled with dangerous things."

"Yeah," Leia laughed and continued to eat as if nothing happened.

She looked between the two of them, wondering what that interaction was.

"I will be leaving today," he spoke up, gaining Ahsoka's attention. "There is a lead I must follow concerning my plans to defeat the Emperor."

"How long are you going to be gone?"

"A few days."

"You're leaving?!" Leia put her food down and frowned at her father, "You already left yesterday!"

"This is important Leia. It's work," he assured, "Do not worry. You can see your grandparents while I am gone."

"No," she shook her head, "Why can't I go with you?"

Vader had thought of taking Leia with him but decided against it after taking the time to think about it. There was the possibility of his informant leading him into a trap, as unlikely as it was. There was also the chance of the doctors telling someone that they saw him there, and since it wasn't a sure thing that they could heal him, he didn't want to risk that chance.

"You cannot go Leia. That's final."

She frowned, "You're mean! I don't like you anymore Daddy!"

Leia jumped off the chair and ran off, causing Vader to sigh and lean against his chair in exhaustion.

Last night had been spent communicating with the informant and finding a ship to buy so that he could make the trip without being followed. He knew there was a tracking beacon on his ship and, while he could easily get rid of it, doing so would alert his Master of what he was trying to do.

There was nothing he wanted to do more than rest.

"You look terrible," Ahsoka pointed out.

He looked at her pointedly.

She noticed what she said and chuckled, "I meant that you appear to be very tired."

"Sleep doesn't come as easily as it used to," he admitted, "I also don't have the time to do so now, I must leave the planet as soon as possible."

"This lead...what is it?"

"A medcenter that might get me off this suit. If it actually works, then I'll be powerful enough to fight the Emperor. As I am now, there is no way for me to ever reach him."

Ahsoka frowned, "He's that powerful?"

"He is. He even defeated Yoda."

She had never heard that before, only assumed that Master Yoda had hidden away because there were only a handful of Jedi left.

"I need to tell you a few things about what to do with Leia once I am gone," he changed the conversation. "You two should stay with her grandparents in case someone comes to this house again. I wasn't expecting to have her leave it so soon, but it must be done. Other than that, you must shield her at all times, and do not tell anyone she is related to Padmé."

"I got it. When are you going to leave?"

"As soon as possible. I was only waiting for Leia to be done with breakfast before we all left this house," he stood up, "I will go talk to her."

Vader left the dining room and entered Leia's room. She was sitting in her bed with tears on her face and looked at him in surprise when he entered before she crossed her arms and looked away with a pout.

He had no idea how to deal with this sort of situation. She was clearly frustrated but he couldn't take her with him. It was much safer to stay with her grandparents where no one would draw a link between the two of them.

"You are going to be staying with your grandparents while I am gone."

Leia didn't say anything.

"I will be gone for at least three days, maybe more."

Her lips quivered before she let out a sob, "Why do you have to go Daddy?"

His eyes softened and he knelt in front of her. "There is no reason for you to worry, I will be back as soon as I can. No matter what happens I will always stay at your side," he vowed and rubbed her head.

Leia finally broke down and jumped into his arms, "I'm sorry Daddy! When I said I didn't like you, I didn't mean it! I love you lots!"

A smile formed on his lips as he held his daughter close, wishing he could stay with her but knowing he was leaving for her own good.

"I love you too Leia."


	7. Chapter 7

**Here's a new chapter guys. Thanks again for all the support. I'll try to give my best efforts on this story.**

 **Remembrance**

 **Chapter 7**

Vader growled as he let go off the controls of his ship.

Just in a little under an hour after leaving Naboo, he was being pulled by the tractor beam of a ship right after he left light speed due to a malfunction on his newly bought ship. He swore to kill the sleazy man that sold it to him once he got back.

So, caught by what was likely a pirate ship, he knew that he would need to kill all those on board. Pirates were not exactly subtle and loved to boast in bars. While it may be a stretch to think any of that information would make it to the Emperor, even such a small possibility should be crushed. Not to mention that in his sleep deprived state, his fury was much easier to ignite.

Once his ship had been pulled into the hangar, he raised to his full height. The ship was big enough to come with a bedroom, kitchen, and restroom; not that he cared for any of those facilities, he mainly chose the ship because of how spacious and big the inside was.

He could feel a group of presences approaching and it was when he decided to act. Having the first move was crucial for any fight so he used the Force to push a button that opened the hatch of the ship. Three at first startled and then horrified faces greeted him, but their fear was short-lived as he Force Pushed them viciously, sending them flying back until they crashed against a wall. A couple died from the impact, and the last one struggled on the floor with a broken arm.

"Tell me, how many of you are there on this ship."

The Rodian refused to speak, possibly because he knew of his fate already. Vader frowned in annoyance and ignited his lightsaber.

It seemed his trip had not begun under the best conditions.

* * *

Before long, Vader stepped over the lifeless bodies of the pirates and headed for the hangar.

As it turned out, the pirate ship was much faster than the one he had bought, possibly because of the illegal modifications done to it. However, he could make it even faster. All he needed to do was take a few things from his ship and modify the new one and in a couple of minutes his travel time would be cut by a couple of days.

The upgrade came in handy since he did not have a lot of time.

* * *

Two days later, Vader went out of hyper space and could see an aquatic planet just as the informant had said. Good, it appeared that the man had been truthful. For that he would reward him greatly.

Almost impatiently, he entered the planet but did not find any signs of civilization where he was. Fortunately this would work to his advantage as it made finding the medcenter much easier.

"R7, scan the planet for any signs of power."

A dark green Astromech droid he had found on the ship and later reprogrammed, beeped and produced a small antenna from one of its compartments. Vader continued to fly the ship quietly until the droid finally beeped as it had found something.

"Input the locations into the ship."

The droid connected to a socket on the ship and with the new coordinates, he turned the ship and flew at a fast speed. There were a few patches of land here but the planet was mostly made up of water. All life was most likely at the bottom of the ocean.

It wasn't long until Vader noticed a large metal tower and a massive platform high in the sky. He flew over it and noticed that the platform had a large facility that was most likely the medcenter. No one had tried to communicate with the ship so he landed on a platform without problem.

"Stay with the ship," he commanded the droid as he got out of the ship and looked around in confusion before using the Force to see if he could find anything.

There really were presences inside. Had they not noticed his arrival?

Well, that didn't matter. He could see an intercom on the large gate preventing him from entering the medcenter.

"I am here because I heard of a great medcenter," he spoke into the device.

A long silence passed until a robotic voice finally spoke.

"Permission granted."

The gate opened and revealed a troop of Separatist Droids, probably reactivated after the Clone Wars.

"Come with us."

He followed after them and found himself impressed with the inside of the facility. While the outside was mostly made up of worn down metal, the inside was quite well-maintained. Everything inside, the walls, the floors, and the ceiling were solid white.

The droids finally led him to a couple of doors that slid open. Inside was a Kaminoan female who appeared shocked at his arrival.

"We have brought the life-form that landed on the planet," one of the droids announced.

"L-Lord Vader..." The Kaminoan let out in a terrified voice.

"There is no need to worry. I have come without the knowledge of the Emperor," he assured, knowing that she was probably scared for her life. "Or the Empire for that matter. I give my word that no one will know about your continued research."

"Then why have you come here?"

Vader sat behind the large desk where the Kaminoan was sitting.

"I received some serious injuries a few years ago, and was wondering if your technology would help me. Of course, I expect to greatly pay for your services, as well as promise protection from the Empire."

The Kaminoan nodded slowly, as if not too sure about the situation but knowing that saying no would mean certain death, "Very well. We will first check your injuries and see if there's anything we can do."

"Let us go then."

* * *

Ahsoka grinned as Leia ran from a medium-sized brown dog in the garden. The kid was laughing hysterically as the dog followed after her every move.

These last two days had been a bit difficult since Leia had been noticeably upset about her father leaving. Her grandparents had tried a lot of things to make her feel better, but it wasn't until the day before that they finally got through to her. They even got her a friendly dog just a few hours ago.

She was taken away from the scene when the comlink started beeping, indicating someone trying to contact her. At first she thought it was Vader, but the comlink beeping was her own personal one. Not a lot of people knew about it so she cautiously answered.

"Ahsoka?" Obi-Wan's image appeared and she could not hide her surprise. "Ah, I finally got through. How are you? I heard you were sent on a mission to confront Vader?"

"I'm fine," she answered, feeling at a loss of words.

"That's good. I imagine the confrontation with Vader did not go according to plan?"

"No, it didn't," she sighed, and then turned to see Leia petting the dog with a smile, "But it wasn't a complete loss."

"Tell me, was there anything different with Vader?"

"Different?"

"There has been something odd with this Force signature lately. At times it is dark, but on other occasions I can feel the Light Side in it."

Ahsoka frowned. So she really wasn't the only one to feel the change...

"I did see a difference. He...didn't kill me."

Obi-Wan's eyebrows rose in surprise, "Did he know who you were?"

"He did."

He rubbed his beard, "That is...interesting."

"I think," she began with hesitation, "That he is returning to the Light Side."

"What makes you say that?"

She glanced at Leia but held her tongue. If Anakin was really returning, then she didn't want to do anything to compromise it, like telling Obi-Wan that Leia was with her. She got the feeling that if she did, Obi-Wan would tell her to take the girl away from her father.

"The way he felt I guess. Why else would he spare me?"

"That may be so but we cannot risk getting our hopes up," Obi-Wan said, "There is another matter I was hoping you could help me with."

"What is it?"

"Finding Leia Organa."

* * *

Vader tapped a finger on his leg impatiently. After going through the physical and having to endure the Kaminoan looking at his burnt and scarred body, he was waiting for the final answer, until the door to the small room he was in finally opened.

"Take a seat Lord Vader."

He did as instructed and sat while the doctor sat on the other end of the desk.

"We looked into your injuries," she said with a heavy voice, "Your skin reconstruction is simple, we only have to inject you with the appropriate chemicals and your burned tissue should go back to normal. However, there is a problem with your organs."

Vader clenched his fists, preparing for the worst.

"Your heart, arteries, and lungs are connected to the chest piece you are wearing by a thick cable. While it is possible for us to remove it once we have harvested your new organs with the samples we took, there is a chance you might die in the process."

He visually relaxed. Having been afraid that there was no helping him, this information was not so overwhelming. If he had survived for hours after being burned alive, he could survive a simple operation.

"If you chose to follow the treatment. Then we can get started right away."

"You may proceed."

The Kaminoan nodded, "Then we will inject you with the serum that will help heal your skin. You will need to inject yourself once a week. We have prepared the serum for your use. If things go accordingly, then you will need the treatment for six weeks."

"I understand, when can I expect the organs to be ready?"

"They should be fully operational in ten weeks. Also, there is the issue of your limbs," the doctor went on, "In order to harvest them, we will need to make a clone of your body from the blood sample you gave us."

Vader crossed his arms, "I thought Force sensitives could not be cloned."

"We could clone them, however every single one suffered terrible mental conditions," she explained, "This clone is different. As it is only needed to harvest your limbs, there is no need for us to worry about any mental conditions. Our technology is advanced enough to regulate growth, there is no real need for a brain to be present in this procedure. In any case, we will have your limbs ready for the time of your operation."

"I see...thank you."

* * *

Despite not sleeping for days, Vader tried as hard as he could to keep from smiling like an idiot.

On his way back to Naboo after taking the first injection, he felt that things were really looking up right now. First he had found out his daughter was alive, and now he would have the ability to protect her from the Emperor. Once he was whole and defeated the Emperor he would leave everything behind and live peacefully with her.

 _'Come away with me. Help me raise our child. Leave everything else behind while we still can.'_

His mood dropped as he was hit by a pang of sadness.

"It took me four years Padmé, but I'm ready to lave it all behind and raise our child."

* * *

Leia stirred from her sleep. It was still really dark in her room so her first instinct was to try and sleep again but something refrained her from doing so. She _felt_ something.

Her eyes narrowed as she tried to think of what it was and then they lit up almost immediately after she realized what the feeling was.

She jumped out of bed and ran out her room. It was usually scary for her to wander around the house when it was dark, but now she didn't care as the feeling was getting much stronger. An excited smile formed on her face as she ran to the front door and opened it.

Vader stood outside, hand raised as if about to knock.

"Daddy!"

He laughed as he caught her in his arms, "What are you doing up so late?"

"I knew you were coming. I felt it!" Leia said in a cheerful voice while Vader took them both inside and closed the door behind them. "I was sleeping but I woke up anyway."

Vader chuckled, "You are very smart Leia."

She beamed at his praise, "Daddy! Go to the garden!"

"Why is that?"

"My grandparents got me a dog Daddy! I was going to name him like you but Ahsoka said you would get angry."

Vader made a mental note to thank her for that.

"So her name is Brown, because she's brown."

He moved to the glass windows from where he could see the garden, and noticed the dog his daughter was talking about.

"That is...a very good name Leia," he continued on to Leia's room, "For now you should get some sleep. Otherwise, you might wake everyone else."

"Okay Daddy," she smiled as he put her down on the bed. "Can you stay here while I sleep?"

"Of course."

Vader sat as quiet as he could at the corner of the room, watching as his daughter closed her eyes and relaxed. He had to stay, after rushing back on the ship and heading straight for the Naberrie's house, he was quite jealous of her ability to fall asleep so quickly. It was a luxury he no longer had unless in his hyperbaric chamber.

At least he would finally be able to sleep in a few hours after he took Leia back to the house.

* * *

Vader, Leia, and Ahsoka arrived at the house a little before noon.

He made sure to thank the Naberries for taking care of Leia but they waved him off and said that they were happy to see her. He had left after that, but not without the couple making arrangements to see them at their house later.

"Hey Daddy," Leia began while holding her father's hand as he led her inside the house. "Can we play today?"

Vader hesitated, not wanting to turn down the request because he didn't want to let her down like he had when he said she could not go with him on his trip; but really wishing to get some rest.

"Maybe you should wait until he rests. Your father appears to be tired," Ahsoka suggested in a calm voice.

Leia looked at her father and tried to feel how he felt. When she did, her focused expression turned to one of worry, "Daddy. You're very tired."

"I am," he answered, surprised that she had felt that.

"That's no good Daddy. You have to sleep," as she said that she began to pull him to his room, "We can play later, for now you have to sleep. No buts!"

A smile formed on his lips as he let his daughter take him to his room.

Ahsoka stayed behind, watching quietly as Leia and Vader entered the room before the girl got out and closed the door behind her.

"Let's go get Brown from the speeder," Ahsoka said as a smiling Leia nodded and followed after her.

* * *

A boy with blond hair grinned as he entered the run down hut he had grown very familiar with. It was always great to come see Uncle Ben since he had all sorts of cool things laying around. Last time he came, he even got a toy ship from him.

"Uncle Ben!"

Obi-Wan smiled when he saw the boy running into the room. He was taken back to all the times when Anakin would run to tell him something he learned at the Jedi Temple when he first arrived.

"Luke, what brings you here this time."

"One of my toy ships broke, but I can't fix it. Even Artoo couldn't!"

"Why don't you let me see it then?"

The Jedi took the toy and looked at it carefully. Luke could be a bit rowdy as he had come to know as they lived nearby so that he could protect them.

"I can get it fixed, it should be good as new tomorrow."

Luke grinned before looking around the room.

"Hey Ben, how come you don't have a lightsaber?"

He looked at the boy in surprise, "Why are you asking that?"

The boy crossed his arms, "Well, my Dad had one and Mom said that you two were friends."

"I see," Obi-Wan nodded, "To answer your question, I lost mine a few years ago but I don't have the means to obtain a new one." With that, the Jedi stood up and took Luke's hand, "Now let's go, your mother will not be happy about you sneaking out to see me again."

"H-How do you know I sneaked out?"

Obi-Wan chuckled, fondly thinking back on how he had to stay one step ahead of a very clever boy that had a tendency for sneaking out of the Jedi Temple.

"Trust me Luke, I have experience."


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry for making you guys wait for this new chapter, I was a bit more busy than I expected. Thanks again to all of you guys showing support, it really means a lot and inspires me to write.**

 **One more thing, I know it's crazy, but when I was thinking of getting Leia a pet, and was looking for domesticated animals in Star Wars, it turns out that dogs actually exist in their universe. Even Luke had one apparently.**

 **Remembrance**

 **Chapter 8**

It had been three and a half years.

Everyone always said that time moved differently for each person. For her, time had moved in the blink of an eye.

One moment she was giving birth to her babies, the other she was waking up in an unknown medcenter. All the doctors present had been astounded, saying that they didn't expect her to wake up so soon, and had arranged to call her emergency contact.

Later on she found out that the emergency contact was Bail Organa, who had given her a quick rundown of the situation she was in.

She had been in a coma for three years, and the Empire ruled the Galaxy. Palpatine employed fear tactics and had a Sith named Darth Vader kill any opposition. He was also the one who led a move to wipe out almost every living Jedi in the Galaxy.

While she had been horrified with what happened, all of those worries were pushed aside when she realized that her babies were not with her. Bail had reassured her that she would see the two of them one day but that they needed to remain hidden as he was part of a rebellion against the Empire, and it would be difficult to keep her existence hidden from the enemies.

The next day, Padmé had been sent away on a ship to Tatooine, where Bail said an old friend would meet her. It was also when she found out that Anakin had died, though they didn't tell her how. As hard as it was to believe that he was truly gone, heartbreak set in when the information set in. She was going to be all alone in Tatooine without knowing when she would see her children, and this time no matter how long she stayed up at night, Anakin would never arrive in the middle of the night with some new heroic story, that she would playfully tell him was exaggerated.

Once she had arrived to Tatooine, Obi-Wan greeted her there with a toddler at his side. At first she was confused, but once the hood covering the boy's face fell off, she ran to him and hugged him tightly, openly weeping in joy as she hugged her baby for the very first time. In a dangerous world, in a more dangerous galaxy without the love of her life, she wouldn't be alone. There was still hope.

Luke looked a lot like Anakin, from his blond hair to the right shade of blue in his eyes...even so, there was still something missing.

She asked Obi-Wan where her daughter was, but he just shook his head and told her that it was safer if she didn't know. The older Jedi had been a great friend for years, however, when he refused to tell her anything about Leia, their relationship became strained to the point where she rarely saw him.

But it wasn't like her to sit around waiting for Obi-Wan to have a change of heart and tell her where Leia was; she was already trying to find a way to get off Tatooine and find her daughter no matter what she may face, or if Obi-Wan was against it.

Speaking of which, despite her anger towards Obi-Wan, Luke seemed to adore the man to the point where he would often sneak out to see him. She would catch him some times, but he was very clever when it came to running off.

Speaking of which...

Padmé placed her hands on her hips as Obi-Wan stepped into her home with Luke.

"What have I told you about sneaking out?" She asked.

"That it was dangerous," Luke stammered while holding the bottom of his shirt, he pouted and looked up at her, "But Uncle Ben is going to fix my ship!"

"Go to your room Luke, we'll talk later."

The boy whined and left the room.

"Padmé," Obi-Wan nodded, "It's good to see you."

"Likewise," she replied in a firm voice.

He sighed, "Please understand that what I'm doing is in order to protect all of you."

"How can I understand if you don't tell me what's going on?" She shot back, "You keep on telling me that Palpatine would find them, but _why?_ Just because they're Anakin's children? I'm sorry Obi-Wan, but I know there's a lot more that you're not telling me."

Obi-Wan managed to keep his expression from betraying how worried he was. Padmé was smart, he had always known that, but there was no way he would tell her that Anakin was still alive, not until he was sure that Vader was truly changing.

"I... I should go."

"Please Obi-Wan!" Padmé shouted with tears in her eyes, "I just want to see my daughter! I want to hold her! No one can take that right away from me!"

Obi-Wan said nothing as he left.

* * *

Vader rubbed his eyes, feeling a lot better than he had in days. He had no idea how long he slept and even though he had woken up due to nightmares again, his body thanked him for the rest, however long it was.

His hyperbaric chamber opened, his mask was in place, and he stepped out of his room. To his surprise, it appeared to be sometime in the afternoon, which meant that he had been asleep for at least four five hours, which was a lot longer than normal.

He pushed the thoughts aside and slowly entered Leia's room, finding her speaking with E-3PO.

"Daddy you're awake!" Leia smiled.

"Of course, you wanted to play correct?" As she smiled, he turned to the droid, "You are done for the day."

With that said he took Leia's hand and let her lead him to wherever she wanted to go.

"We have to play outside, there's so much cool stuff there."

"What about the dangerous creatures out there?" Vader decided to play along with a faint smile.

Leia grinned and waved a finger, "You're super strong Daddy. That's why I'm not afraid."

He couldn't help but chuckle at that.

"That's why it's okay to go play outside," she added, in what he called her 'senator voice.' "You will keep all the monsters away."

A smile formed on his lips, "Very well, but you can't go anywhere I can't see you."

She beamed and hugged his leg, "Thank you Daddy! We're gonna have so much fun, I promise!"

Vader and Leia continued on to the main door, passing by Ahsoka who was sitting on a chair reading a datapad.

"Where are you-"

"You're coming too," he cut her off, earning an annoyed look, which he noticed and smirked, "It would be a good chance to improve on your sloppy fighting form."

Ahsoka narrowed her eyes, "I'm a lot better than I was years ago."

"That's not saying much _Snips_."

The Togruta clenched her fists. She knew he was baiting her into training with him, but even now he had an amazing way of knowing just what buttons to push to get a reaction out of her.

"Please come with us," Leia chimed in with a cute look on her face that Ahsoka couldn't resist.

"Fine."

* * *

Vader stood tall with a training lightsaber in hand, he didn't use them often as he preferred to train with his normal lightsaber in order to get more used to it, but it didn't hurt to have a couple.

Ahsoka panted as she circled around him slowly with a couple of training sabers on her hands. To say that his defense was good would be an understatement, even with her years of experience, he managed to block and evade most of her hits. She half-expected this as he had trained her before, however this level of foresight was something his younger self did not have.

"You are too impatient," Vader spoke up, "That is how I stay one step ahead of you. I studied every form of lightsaber combat, which is why it's a simple task to foresee what you're going to do next." He relaxed his stance and put the saber away, "That will be all for today."

With that he joined Leia, who had been sitting against a tree watching the two practice.

"You won Daddy!"

"We were practicing, it was not a contest," he corrected her while ruffling her hair, "But of course I would win if it was a contest."

She smiled at her father, "Because you're the strongest, right?"

"Of course," he answered, "Now, what would you like to do?"

"I want to play hide n seek! There's lots of places here so it'll be a lot of fun," she explained with a thoughtful expression as she turned to Ahsoka, "You can play too. I'll hide and you two look for me!"

Leia didn't wait for confirmation as she ran off into the woods.

Ahsoka grinned when seeing the way Vader tensed and immersed himself in the Force to make sure she wasn't in danger, what a worrywart. That last thought caused her grin to disappear. She had been thinking about telling Vader that there were people trying to find Leia, but didn't want to sell out Obi-Wan in the process.

If she was true to her feelings, she would admit that keeping something so big hidden from Vader would only end in disaster. He was making amazing progress in returning to the Light, but if he were to find out that she had been keeping something so important from him, then it would hurt his progress.

"There is something troubling you."

Vader's robotic voice snapped her out of her thoughts, and she turned to see him looking her way.

"I..." Ahsoka trailed off and then sighed, "My _contact_ informed me that they are looking for Leia."

"Why?"

"Because they were friends of Senator Organa's."

"I see. And who is this contact?"

She shook her head, "I can't tell you that."

Vader clenched his fists, "Very well, I will let it slide since I have a suspicion as to who your _contact_ is. However, I want to you tell me if they find anything. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"Good."

"Okay, you can find me now!" Leia's voice rang through the area, breaking the tension between the two.

Vader looked in the direction Leia was, before turning back to his old apprentice, "One more thing. Even though I'm aware that there is something changing within me, tell Kenobi that nothing will ever change between us. If I find him, I will kill him."

With that last dark promise, Vader left to go find his daughter.

* * *

Their time together had to come to a halt as the time had come for Vader to return to his duties.

While he had found a couple of suitable places to take Leia, it would need a bit more time until they were ready to move in, much more so when he wanted to keep his identity a secret which was near impossible when he was walking around in an easily recognizable suit.

So here he was, standing on the landing platform of the Naboo home at night since he would rather leave now than later. Ahsoka had a supportive hand on Leia's shoulder while she tried to keep a tough act which was ruined by her quivering lips.

Vader knelt down and gently pulled her into a hug, "I promise to see you again very soon."

Leia began to cry and gripped his chest, "Why can't I go with you Daddy? I wanna go with you too."

"I'm sorry, but it is too dangerous for you to go," he said, once again curing the robotic voice that sounded stern no matter what tone he tried to use. At least, Leia was able to feel his emotions so she wouldn't think that it wasn't killing him to go.

He pulled away and held her shoulders gently, "Soon we will be together every day. Just be patient, okay?"

"When is that going to happen?" Leia complained, tears still rolling down her cheeks as she pouted, "I don't want you to go Daddy."

"Only nine weeks," he assured her but noticed that it wasn't doing much to lift her spirits. "But I will see you several times before that time comes. I'll even do anything you want when I see you again."

Leia wiped her tears, "Like what?"

"Whatever you can think of."

"Then..." she bit her lip, "I want to see your face."

Vader almost forgot how to breath were it not for the mask forcing him to. She wanted what?

"Even though you're my Daddy, I don't know what you look like."

He swallowed a lump in his throat. While he would move worlds for his daughter, this request was a bit hard to fulfill... Then again, perhaps his skin treatment would get rid of most of the burns on his face by the time he saw Leia again. Since he had been gone for two weeks, the Emperor would surely not give him a break for a bit of time.

"Okay Leia... I will."

She smiled and wiped her tears away, "But you have to promise to come quickly too!"

"Oh? You are quite demanding young lady," he said in amusement, causing her to giggle. He ruffled her hair and stood up, "Very well. I promise." After saying that, he turned to Ahsoka, "Please take care of her with your life. Stay with her grandparents to prevent anyone from making a link between us. I will contact you at least once a week, do not contact me unless it's an emergency."

Ahsoka grinned, "You worry too much."

"Only because _you're_ the one I'm leaving with Leia," he answered with an amused smirk.

The green protocol droid emerged from his ship and beeped a couple of times, indicating that the preparations were done and the ship was ready to leave.

With a heavy heart he looked at his daughter and smiled sadly when seeing her eyes welled up with tears again.

"I will be back as soon as I can Leia, good-bye for now."

Ahsoka watched as her old Master left and couldn't help but say, "May the Force be with you."

Vader stopped at the ramp, looking at his old padawan in surprise. It was a simple phrase but one he hadn't heard in years. He couldn't help but smile at the nostalgia those words brought him.

"May the Force be with you too."

* * *

The Emperor watched his apprentice through a holo with a careful gaze.

Something had been off about Vader for the last couple of weeks, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Could it be that his apprentice foolishly thought about attempting to kill him? Such was the way of the Sith but Vader was too weak to try anything.

Strong enough to punish any fool trying to stand against his Empire, but weak enough to remain the apprentice.

Vader was truly his best apprentice yet.

"I trust your two weeks off gave renewed your strength," he said, "How was Naboo? Did you visit your dead wife's grave?"

Sidious smirked at the wave of hatred he felt from his apprentice. Even after four years, she was still a touchy subject.

"No Master, I spent my time meditating."

Perhaps that could explain the irregularity in Vader. It was like his apprentice to try and meditate to pass the time.

"Very well old friend, return to your duties."

Vader cursed under his breath once the transmission cut off.

He was back on board the Executor, which had remained orbiting around Alderaan for the two weeks to _discourage_ any revolts. Now that the newly appointed Governor had been put in charge of the planet, it was time for him to leave.

"Have there been any leads while I was gone?" Vader asked as soon as he walked into the bridge.

Piett, and everyone else in the room, saluted their commander before they went back to work. While Darth Vader demanded respect, he also expected them to work regardless of the situation.

"There have been reports of someone using a lightsaber at a small Outer Rim Planet."

Vader crossed his arms, so he was back to taking shady leads and running on the trail of a Jedi...

"I trust this information came from a reliable source."

Piett nodded, "It came from a pirate that has given us information before."

"Very well, make way to the planet."

Soon the ship entered hyper space as Vader stood at the bridge with his arms crossed, something he often did.

' _Only nine more weeks of this_...' Vader repeated in his mind, trying to silence the part of him telling him to go back to his daughter.

* * *

It was nighttime when Darth Vader arrived at Lothal, the planet in which the Jedi was apparently spotted.

He never did like coming to planets such as these, even as Skywalker.

The Outer Rim didn't seem to change no matter who was ruling. Even with the Republic, these planets were full of wretched people and were run by gangs. Not even the Empire rising to power changed this, though it was probably due to a lack of trying since the Emperor had made no real effort to change things in the Outer Rim.

"Lord Vader," the local Governor bowed his head as he came out to greet him at the landing platform, "We are most honored to be in your presence."

"Save the courtesies, I am here for one reason only."

"Of course, you are a busy man," the Governor chuckled nervously, "My men looked into the data sent by your fleet and found the cantina where the information on the Jedi originated. Though, I have to say that it's in a dangerous part of town."

One of the Stormtroopers with Vader stepped forward, "Should we go check it out sir?"

"No, I will see to it myself."

As much as he didn't want to go to a sleazy place full of smugglers and bounty hunters, their target was a Jedi. At times like this he preferred to handle everything himself and leave only basic orders to his men, since the Jedi were very good at running away like cowards. The last thing he wanted was to chase after some traitor for weeks.

"Now Governor, tell me where this cantina is."

* * *

Lothal was reminiscent of Tatooine. There _were_ towns, however there were vast spaces of nothingness between them. Still, he much preferred Lothal, at least it wasn't covered in sand.

Vader's cape fluttered with the wind as he drove his speeder away from the city.

The cantina was, as he guessed, full of the worst kinds of people. As soon as he entered he could feel all of their eyes on him, but he had paid them no mind and went over to _persuade_ whoever had information on the Jedi. None of them wanted to talk at first, but he made sure to change that by killing a couple of people there as an example.

In the end, they pointed an area on his map. Though they didn't know the exact location, just by being pointed in the right direction he could potentially find the Jedi.

A screen on the speeder began to blink, signaling that they were at the spot marked on the map.

Vader stopped the speeder and closed his eyes, needing to concentrate as he called for the Force so that he could search the area for a Force signature.

Soon enough he could feel something and as he tried to get a clearer look, he frowned in confusion.

This was no Jedi.

The Force signature was too dark, too dark for a Dark Jedi even.

 _This was a Sith._

But how? Only he and the Emperor were left... Had Sidious trained someone in secret?

No, that couldn't be. If that were the case then Sidious would have sent him to Lothal himself. This had to be someone neither he or the Emperor knew about.

Vader frowned under the mask as he drove into a canyon slowly, his senses on high alert as he tried to pinpoint the exact location of the enemy. Being surrounded by two tall hills on either side, he was aware that he had the tactical disadvantage and was most likely walking into a trap, however, much like he did before, he decided to spring the trap.

Only the sound of his breathing could be heard as he slowly drove deeper and deeper into the path inside the canyon until he finally noticed a cloaked figure further up ahead standing on the same path he was on.

Vader figured that the Sith wanted to talk, or was standing out in the open as a way to tell him that he didn't need any tricks.

"You're Sidious' apprentice..." the cloaked Sith stated as Vader got out of the speeder and walked towards him.

Vader narrowed his eyes, finding the presence somewhat familiar, "Who are you?"

The cloaked enemy didn't respond and ignited a red lightsaber in both hands, the two blades hissing dangerously.

In a mere moment, Vader was forced to bring up his own lightsaber to parry a slash aimed at his head and clock another swipe at his chest piece. The cloaked figure wasn't done and let loose a barrage of strikes that Vader had a hard time blocking until he finally used the Force to push the Sith away before one of the lightsabers got him.

"You're slow," the figure observed, "Yet your form is quite good. But we both know how this is going to end."

The cloaked Sith was right.

As much as Vader hated to admit it, he had had trouble blocking most of the attacks. Despite his solid defense, he had trouble with enemies who were both fast and skilled.

However, Vader did not think of himself as a helpless victim. The suit had forced him to improvise quite a lot when fighting skilled Jedi.

"You might be skilled, however, your confidence blinds you," Vader said.

The cloaked figure chuckled, "It is both you and Sidious who are blind. Blind to me and my Master."

Vader turned off his lightsaber and stretched out one of his hands, "I will kill him just like I killed you."

When he said that, he used the Force to pull at a fragile point on the two cliffs, and caused them both to break away and bury the unsuspecting Sith.

Vader stood silently as the massive cloud of debris died down and when he tried to see if the Sith was alive, he was relieved when he didn't find his Force signature.

Not a hard fought win, but troublesome nonetheless, Vader thought as he got on his speeder and left the area.

Sidious was not his only problem now, there was someone else out there plotting something. Still, that did not change his plans. He would become whole, kill Sidious, and then track down and kill the other Sith who was out there.

Fortunately he could use Sidious to find more information on these new Sith.

* * *

It wasn't long until Vader was back on the Executor and kneeling as the image of his Master appeared.

"Lord Vader, I heard you were searching for a Jedi..."

"Yes Master, however, there was more to the rumor."

"Is that so?"

"The Jedi...turned out to be a Sith."

Sidious leaned forward, his eyes narrowing dangerously, "Are you certain?"

"Yes Master. There was no mistaking the Dark Side within him," Vader continued, "He also mentioned having a Master."

"I trust that you killed him," Sidious hissed.

"Indeed Master. There is nothing left of him."

"Good," the Emperor nodded, "We cannot allow for this supposed Master to live. Put your hunt of the Jedi to a halt at once, focus on finding this Sith. And when you do, bring him to me."

Vader bowed his head, "As you wish, my Master."

Once the hologram of Sidious was gone, Vader stood and crossed his arms. Now that he had been relieved of hunting down Jedi, he had the opportunity to find a suitable place to take Leia. It would be a bit difficult since he was looking for a planet the Empire didn't have too many eyes on, but not one in the Outer Rim since most of them were not places he wanted his daughter to be in.

He briefly remembered how she said she wanted to see Tatooine and chuckled. There was no way he was ever going to that dust ball again.

* * *

Leia smiled to herself while she drew on a notebook her Daddy had given her.

She was sitting in the garden of her grandparents' house while Ahsoka sat in front of her, doing that weird sleeping thing she did a lot.

"Daddy is really going to like this one," she smiled proudly and showed the picture to the dog at her side, "See. I even made his cape red!"

Giggling to herself, she wasn't aware of the former Jedi looking at her with a smile.

Ahsoka had grown fond of the little girl, seeing her as a little sister. While she had been told before not to form attachments, she found that without struggling so much to keep her emotions in check, it really help in giving her peace. At times like these, she wondered if the Jedi Order had been right about forbidding attachment.

Just as she wondered about that, her comlink went off.

She first went to her personal comlink and noticed that the actual message was coming from the one Vader had given her.

"Ahsoka," Vader's voice came from the device.

Leia heard the voice and smiled before putting her things aside and running to Ahsoka's side.

"Daddy! Is that you?!"

"It's me. Have you been good?"

She nodded, "I have. I even helped my Grandma clean..."

"Clean what?" Vader asked.

His daughter pouted, a bit of guilt in her face, "Brown broke some plates. I'm sorry Daddy, I didn't know she would."

There was a pause at the other end of the line before Vader spoke.

"Don't worry about such a thing Leia. You did your best to help clean the broken plates. You're a very good girl."

Ahsoka found it impossible not to smile as Leia giggled at his praise and went on to talk about what she had done in the one week Vader had been gone.

"And then, I drew a new picture of you Daddy," Leia went on before pausing and frowning, "When are you coming back Daddy?"

"That is what I wanted to talk about. Ahsoka, are you there?"

"I am," she answered.

"Good. I called to inform you that I have not found a new home yet. However, I will be coming to Naboo next week."

While Leia cheered, Ahsoka furrowed her brow in confusion.

"I thought you said it was dangerous to come here?"

"It is. However, I can make an excuse for this visit if the Emperor finds out. I'll only be there for a day or two so the possibility of him finding out are low."

Ahsoka nodded, "Okay, we'll expect you next week."

Once their conversation was over, she handed the comlink to an eager Leia who began to talk her father's ears off again.

* * *

The hooded Sith knelt before the giant holo of a non-human.

"Forgive me Master, I failed. He surprised me by causing a landslide."

A torrent of Sith Lightning hit the hooded figure who cried out and fell to the floor, his hood coming off to reveal a red face with black markings.

"This was our chance to get rid of Vader without alerting Sidious..." the Master sneered before scoffing, "No matter. I have sensed a change in the Force. One that will work to our favor."

The Sith Master leaned back on his seat with a smirk, "We will remain in the shadows for now, and watch as Sidious' Empire falls apart as the two kill each other."

"Understood Master," the panting apprentice bowed as the image of his Master disappeared.


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry about the wait guys. I had a bit of a busy schedule with writing essays for classes, and being burnt out on writing. But now I'm back with a new chapter. I hope you guys like it.**

 **Remembrance**

 **Chapter 9**

Darth Sidious impatiently tapped his bony fingers on the edge of his seat.

He was in his palace, deep in thought as, for the first time, the Force would not grant him foresight on what was happening.

Even though he could not see it, he _knew_ that something was happening. Almost like a storm about to form.

It was also worth to note that every time he tried to solve this mystery, his thoughts ended up on his apprentice. As if he was the one responsible for this state of confusion in the Force, and while it was also possible that the Sith Vader had confronted was responsible for this strangeness, he would not take any chances. Even though Vader would never be strong enough to kill him, he would crush his plans.

That is, if they were there to begin with.

Perhaps it was time for him to find this out himself.

He pressed a button on his chair, and soon the doors to his throne room opened and three hooded figures entered the room and kneeled before him.

These were his secret Force-sensitive assassins, tools he used whenever a _task_ needed to be kept secret, such as killing governors or traitorous commanders.

"Your task this time is simple. I want eyes on Vader, report to me if he does anything out of the ordinary. You will receive the location of his ship later today, for now prepare to leave the planet."

"Understood."

The three chorused before leaving the room.

 _'Now Vader. We shall see if you are truly the one behind this shift in the Force.'_

* * *

Vader could feel his hands trembling.

It was the day before he would go back to Naboo, and he had gone to his hyperbaric chamber with something he never thought he would use, a mirror. He had promised to let Leia see his face and he needed to see how bad his face looked so that he could prepare Leia for it. Not once had he ever looked at his face after Mustafar and expected the worse even with the treatment he had gone through for three weeks now.

What he saw in the mirror was something he did not expect.

It was his face.

The same one he had when he was a Jedi, minus the scar on his right eye and long hair. He studied his face carefully, not believing what he was seeing, and then noticed the bit of hair growing already.

Hadn't the Kaminoan said that it would take six weeks for his skin treatment?

Perhaps he should think over that later, for now he was just glad that Leia wouldn't have to see how bad his face before the treatment.

A small smile formed on his face at that thought, pleasantly surprised with himself over his first thought going to his daughter.

His eyes closed and he leaned back on his seat.

A bit of sleep would be pleasant and, even though he sounded like an exited child, it would make time go by faster.

* * *

The next day went by as he expected.

When he first woke up, he made sure to tell Ahsoka to take Leia to his Naboo home to wait for him.

Once the time came for him to leave, he gave orders to have the ship orbit on a nearby planet in order to avoid having the people of Naboo tell everyone they spotted the Executor, and finally left on one of his personal ships.

It was around midday when he flew over Theed and finally spotted the home and touched down on the landing platform.

As the hatch of the ship opened, he was met with a warm wave from the Force, and spotted Leia running out of the house. He smiled as his daughter ran, and he dropped down to one knee in order to catch her in a hug and spin her around.

Leia giggled, "Daddy, you're home!"

"Indeed."

"I was waiting for your ship and I heard it all the way inside the house!"

"Oh?" He continued to smile as he made his way inside the house with Leia in his arms.

"Yeah," she nodded happily, "And I drew you lots of pictures. Even one where you have a cool red cape!"

"Still hung up about the cape," he commented in amusement.

Leia giggled in response. Her Daddy's voice always sounded the same, but she was able to tell when he was happy or sad. Right now, he was very happy.

Once Vader led them inside the house, he let her down when he noticed Ahsoka approaching them. He had planned to speak with her and he had always preferred to take care of things as soon as possible.

"Why don't you bring me your drawings Leia? I'll wait here."

"Okay! You're really going to like them Daddy!" Leia laughed as she eagerly ran off.

Vader crossed his arms and turned to his old apprentice, "How have things been with Leia?"

Ahsoka fought the urge to smirk, he had asked the same question in the four times he called her while he was away.

"She was a bit sad that you left, but woke up really early today and all but dragged me back here."

He nodded, "What about the people looking for her? Have they had any leads?"

"Not that I know of," she shook her head, "I'm amazed you did such a good job in keeping her existence a secret."

"It was not difficult," he answered as he sat on a single couch. "However, these coming weeks will bring about new problems."

Ahsoka frowned at that.

"I've been thinking that I shouldn't take Leia off of this planet until the Emperor is dead," he went on, "I can't risk her safety simply because I wish to be with her."

"I can understand that but..." Ahsoka trailed off, her eyes drawn to the girl rushing to her father's side with a small stack of papers. There was no way the youngling would be happy about not seeing her father for several weeks.

* * *

Vader could not help but be nervous.

It had been a few hours since he first arrived at Naboo, and he was finally standing before his hyperbaric chamber with Leia on his side.

She had a look of awe on her face as he looked at the foreign machine, and he couldn't help but chuckle.

In any case, what he was nervous about wasn't baring his face to her since it had healed very nicely. No, what he didn't want to do was answer all of the questions that would surely come to her mind. While questions on why he needed to wear the mask were innocent enough, what he feared was being asked about the accident.

Yet, there was **one** thing he deeply feared.

If Leia saw that she had a different eye color and hair than he did, then she might ask about her mother. He had told her that one day he would tell her more about _her_ , but now that their bond had grown even stronger, Leia would surely be able to tell whenever he was lying.

Even though the Emperor had lied about how _she_ died, the fact still stood that he had been blinded by rage and attacked her. If Leia found that out then she would surely hate him. She would blame him for her mother's death, and how could he deny it? He might as well have killed her, he had been crazed with power back then.

Indeed, Leia would hate him when-

"Daddy!"

Vader was snapped out of his thoughts and looked down to see his daughter looking up at him with a look of worry.

"What is it Leia?"

"You weren't listening to me," she said as her lip quivered, "And you were really sad again."

He got down on one knee and smiled sadly when seeing the way she was trying to keep from crying until a couple of tears finally rolled down. His gloved mechanical fingers softly wiped the tears away before he gently rubbed her head.

"I'm sorry Leia. But don't worry, I am not sad anymore. How could I be when I have the most beautiful daughter in the world?"

She nodded as her father wiped her tears away, and smiled softly.

"Now come, I believe I have a promise to keep."

The hyperbaric chamber opened and Vader sat on the seat within it with Leia on his lap. She appeared amazed with the technology before looking closely at her father when a machine grabbed a part of his mask. Her eyes were glued to his face as part of the mask came off once the machine closed, and then

She appeared amazed with the technology but her attention was taken away when she saw a pair of machines grasp the front and top of her father's mask, and slowly retract them as the chamber closed.

Brown eyes filled with awe as the mask was finally off and she could see her father's face for the first time.

"You're bald!"

Any hint of nervousness left Vader in a hearty chuckle, "Not bald. I've got hair growing."

"Oh..." Leia had a wondrous expression as she studied her father, finding out a lot about him. Like that he had blue eyes, and blond hair. "How come I don't have blue eyes Daddy?"

"Because you have your mother's eyes," he said, as he did what he never thought he would when he first met her, and kissed her forehead in fatherly affection. As she giggled, he smiled at her, "The most beautiful brown eyes in the galaxy."

"Was my mommy pretty Daddy?"

"Of course," he said with a small smile. "Did you know that she was also a Queen?"

Leia's eyes went wide with surprise, "Really?"

"Indeed."

"Could you tell me more about her?" Leia asked in a timid voice, knowing how hard it was for her Daddy to speak about her.

Vader could sense the yearning in his daughter but at the same time felt like he couldn't. Simply remembering _her_ was painful enough, but talking and going through memories of good times sounded like torture.

Even so...as he looked at his daughter's expecting eyes, he realized that even if it hurt him, she deserved to know.

"Your mother...she was very strong-willed," he began, surprising both Leia and himself.

"What does that mean Daddy?"

"It means that she was very strong, and very brave," Vader said with a small smile. "No matter what anyone said, she was always trying her best to make everyone happy. To keep everyone safe. She had such a big heart that she would feel very sad when people were in trouble... That's why she was very loved when she was alive."

Leia smiled as her father went on.

"There were times when someone would be angry over her wanting to keep people safe, but she never once stopped trying her best."

The little girl's eyes were filled with pride and wonder as she heard about her real mother.

"She was like an angel."

Leia cocked her head to the side, "What's that Daddy?"

"They are the most beautiful and kind beings in the galaxy."

"Then Mommy was a real good person!"

He nodded slowly.

The hollow pain in his chest that he associated with memories of _her_ had begun to spread. He desperately wanted to stop talking, to push those memories aside so that he could compose himself and spare what was surely a painful experience. However, Leia was still looking at him expectantly.

Who was he to deny his daughter the right to know about her mother?

"Let's see..." he went on, wondering what to say next. "Your mother loved many things. Her home planet, her people, and other things, however, the love she felt for you was easily the strongest."

Leia looked up at him with a confused expression, "She loved me? But we never met."

"Even so, she loved you dearly," he smiled, "The first time she told me about you, she was scared but at the same time very excited. Every night she would tell me about how she couldn't wait for you to be born."

A pang of hurt struck Vader in the chest as he kept on talking.

"She wanted us to live here in Naboo... Even though she loved the galaxy deeply, she was willing to turn away from it if it meant living peacefully with us and-" his voice broke, and he let out a humorless chuckle when he saw the confused expression on Leia's face. Not wanting to worry her, he swallowed a lump in his throat and pushed on, "And then uh... _She_ would brush her hair at the balcony, all the while I would think about how much I loved her."

His chin began to quiver.

"And then _she_... _she..._ "

Tears began to roll down Vader's cheeks before he buried his face in his hands.

" _Padmé_."

Memories flashed through his eyes. Ranging from their first kiss, to the day she told him that he was going to be a father. The more he remembered, the worst the pain got.

Padmé was gone, he would never see her again. He could have run away with her. He could have left everything behind for her sake, but in his power-induced trance, he had turned on her. The last memory she had of him was of the horrible act he committed, she probably died hating him...

"Daddy!"

Vader snapped out of his thoughts to see a sobbing Leia shaking his arms as hard as she could.

"Please don't be sad Daddy! You d-don't have to tell me more!" She hiccuped.

"I'm sorry," he muttered as a sad smile spread across his face and he used his hands to wipe away her tears. "Sorry I worried you. I was just remembering your mother. I'm okay now."

Leia wrapped her arms around his neck, nuzzled her face on his shoulder, and cried.

* * *

Obi-Wan frowned deeply, his eyes closed tightly in concentration as he tried to find even a speck of the Dark Side within Darth Vader.

It had happened suddenly.

One moment he felt Vader's presence come close again, and the other, the darkness around him had gone out completely. For a moment he thought that Vader had been killed, but there was no mistaking _that_ Force signature. He had felt it for years after all.

"You finally see that he is leaving the Dark Side."

Obi-Wan opened his eyes and was met with the Force Ghost of his old master.

"I can't deny that this is curious, but leaving the Dark Side..."

"Perhaps you should trust a little more in your old apprentice," Qui-Gon suggested.

"I...can't," Obi-Wan said in a dejected voice. "I'm sorry Master, but even now I find it hard to trust him. The last time my faith was with him, the Jedi Order paid the price."

Qui-Gon shook his head, "This side of you never changed as time passed. You refuse to trust in things which you cannot see. Anakin will need you if he is to return. I hope you'll answer his call."

Kenobi said nothing as the ghost disappeared and he was left alone in his old hut.

Silently he decided that in the extremely unlikely event that Anakin returned, he would lend his help so long as his old apprentice didn't try to kill him first.

* * *

Sidious narrowed his eyes as the image of one of the Emperor's Hands appeared before him in the form of a blue hologram.

"We have found peculiar information on Vader."

The Sith tipped his head as a signal for the man to continue.

"One of our members managed to board the Executor as a spy, and found out that Vader left the ship and headed for the planet Naboo."

"Naboo you say?" Sidious frowned.

Vader loathed the planet for the memories that tortured him. It was the reason for why he sent his apprentice there in the first place. Being surrounded by painful memories would undoubtedly make him more powerful in the Dark Side.

Thinking about it, it did make sense for Vader to attempt to keep something hidden from him by going to such an unlikely planet.

"Continue to monitor Vader. Follow him to Naboo if you can."

"Yes Milord."

* * *

Vader lingered in the doorway of Leia's room, watching her sleep peacefully even though a few moments before she had declared that she was not tired.

A small smile formed on his face and he turned away from the room, intending to go to his own for the night, but something stopped him. He could sense Ahsoka in the living area, not in the room she had been given.

Thinking that she probably had something she wanted to say, he headed to his new destination and found her standing against a wall with her arms crossed. Possibly deep in thought, he noticed how her eyes went wide in surprise before they regained their normal calmness.

"I take it you wanted to speak about something," he asked in his deep mechanical voice.

"Not really, but I was wondering something," Ahsoka's face showed the confusion she was feeling. "I should have asked you sooner, but are you shielding your presence from the Emperor?" Her mind went back to the moment earlier when Vader's presence completely lost the darkness it usually had.

"There is no need to worry. I shield myself whenever I'm with Leia. That comes with its own risk, but I know Sidious, and it is rare for him to notice when I slip off. I've done it even before I met Leia."

"Okay," Ahsoka grinned, relieved. That was a big load off her mind.

"However, since you are already here and I see no need to put it off any longer, I wanted to speak with you about something important."

"What is it?"

"Something... _strange_ , happened with my treatment. As such, I will be going to meet the Kaminoan once again," he paused. "On the off chance that I won't be able to come back, I will be leaving a ship with you in case something goes wrong."

She frowned, "Like what?"

"Like the Emperor catching on to my plans," he answered.

Ahsoka could feel his eyes on hers, staring deeply in the way he usually did in the past whenever he had something important to say.

"Sidious is not stupid. Soon he will learn of my coming to Naboo and send the Emperor's Hands to investigate."

"The Emperor's Hand's?"

"They are trained Force-sensitive assassins that follow the Emperor's orders blindly. While I don't doubt your skill, they _will_ outnumber you, and even two of them could make it impossible for you to fight and protect Leia at the same time. Because of this I want you to leave this planet if you are ever targeted or spied on by anyone."

"Fine, I can promise that," she answered without hesitation. "But where would we go? Do you have somewhere planned already?"

Vader clenched his fists, his teeth grinding together in anger. "If...you are forced to leave the planet. Then I want you to go to _someone_ who can offer you a hiding place."

Ahsoka looked at him blankly, too shocked for words. There was no need for him to mention just _who_ he was referring to, and the fact that he was willing to rely on _him_ could only mean that he was changing a lot faster than she thought.

Things were finally starting to look up.

"Don't worry, I'll protect little Leia to the best of my abilities."

Vader grinned slightly at her words of reassurance. "Very well."

With that he headed for his room.

* * *

It was around noon by the time Ahsoka finished with her training.

After what Vader said yesterday, she had been pushing herself even more on the chance that she was forced to fight. While she had gotten much stronger ever since the Empire took over, she had to admit that Vader had gotten much better at teaching. His advice proved to help her improve quite well.

As she entered the house, she didn't see anyone in the living area, not did she hear Vader's breathing.

A small smile formed on her face as she went to the most likely place where they were. Leia's room.

Just as she expected, she opened the door and couldn't help but chuckle at the amusing sight. Leia and Vader sat on the floor, the little girl was cheering while her father constructed a replica of his ship with dozens of building blocks.

"You're really good at making ships!" Leia exclaimed.

"Indeed," he replied. "Now let's make it fly."

Leia laughed and clapped her hands as Vader used the Force to make the ship fly around the room and perform various tricks, until it finally landed in between them.

"I see you are done with your training," Vader said to Ahsoka while standing up to his full height.

Leia pouted and crossed her arms when she saw Ahsoka nodding.

"It's not fair Daddy, why do you have to leave so soon?"

He ruffled her hair, "Do not worry Leia. If things go as planned, then this will be the last time I leave."

She perked up at his words, "Really?"

"Of course."

"Okay Daddy, but when are you coming back? Tomorrow?"

"Not that soon, but I promise that when I am back, we will not be separated again."

Leia smiled and hugged his leg. "But you have to promise not to be sad when you leave."

"I promise," he replied as they separated and he took her tiny hand on his. "Now let's go."

* * *

Moments later, Ahsoka and Leia stood side by side on the landing platform of the house, watching as Vader's ship flew off in the distance.

"Come on Leia, let's go back to your grandparents," Ahsoka said before she lead the way for her speeder.

Leia wordlessly followed her and it wasn't until they both got on that she looked up at her with a strange look on her face.

"Will Daddy be okay?"

Ahsoka was a bit taken off by the strange question, "Of course he will be. Why do you ask?"

The little girl gripped the hem of her dress and frowned, "I had a bad dream but I didn't want to tell Daddy." A couple of tears formed on the girl's face, "Daddy was really hurt and screaming..."

"Don't be afraid Leia, nothing like that will happen," she tried to reassure the girl.

"But it did happen!" Leia shouted as a tear slid down her face, "A bad man with a beard hurt him. I saw it!"

Ahsoka tried not to look surprised as the little girl wept for her father. To be honest, she had no idea if what Leia was seeing was the past or the future. She was strong in the Force, and had a strong connection to her father, it wouldn't be strange for her to share his dreams every once in a while. And, _'a bad man with a bear_ _d_ _,'_ sounded a bit too like someone she and Vader knew.

Could his telling her to go to Obi-Wan if they were in trouble, be a cause for this shared dream?

No, that didn't matter now. She first had to calm her down.

"Look Leia, what does your father always tell you?"

Leia slowly looked at her, wiping away a couple of tears.

"He tells you that he's the strongest person in the galaxy right?"

The little girl shook her head, "He says he's the strongest person **ever**."

Well, it was nice to see that Vader shared Anakin's perfect vision of himself.

"Right. So there's no way anyone will hurt him. I think you just had a bad dream because you're going to miss him."

The tears stopped though Ahsoka could see that Leia was rather pensive, the dream clearly still in her mind, but at least now she thought it was a dream as opposed to a vision.

Ahsoka tried not to sigh, and settled for releasing a bit of tension through the Force.

With the Emperor likely to poke his head in soon, she had a long hard task ahead of her.


	10. Chapter 10

**Sorry for the long wait guys. I was busy with school and other stuff, but now that my classes are over I'm ready to get to writing again. Thanks for being patient, and for giving feedback, it really helps to see your support.**

 **Remembrance**

 **Chapter 10**

In the busy market streets of Theed, Ahsoka walked through the waves of people while wearing a brown cloak that hid her features well, and carried a basket with a couple of groceries.

Just as Vader had instructed, she had precautions not to draw any unwanted attention to herself. Although she had no trouble in hiding her presence, his other instructions on keeping Leia indoors all the time hadn't been well received with the little lady. Despite the maturity she showed for her age, Leia was still a child that could get bored easily if she was forced to stay indoors all the time, with only a garden offering the chance for her to run around. But even so, Ahsoka agreed with Vader's concerns. With people under the Emperor possibly looking to get dirt on Vader, there was not telling what would happen if they found out he had a child.

She would have stayed indoors herself, but being a guest in a house without doing much to help out, had made her want to at least help them out by going out to buy groceries for them. It was the least she could do.

However, there was also another reason for these trips to the market.

Lately, she had noticed an increase in the number of Imperial forces in town. She wasn't about to leave the planet just yet, first she needed to make sure if they were the people that Vader warned her about.

Her eyes narrowed on an Imperial Officer walking away from the busy streets. If there was one thing she learned from watching them these last few days, it was that Imperial Officer's were rarely alone, mostly accompanied by a couple of Stormtroopers.

Deciding that she may be able to find something, she quietly followed after him while keeping her Force presence hidden just in case. He was walking into a desolate street and then walked into a dark alleyway.

Suspicious.

Ahsoka climbed up one of the two buildings with a powerful leap, and then peeked into the alleyway from above, easily spotting the officer speaking with a person shrouded in the dark side of the Force. She leaned in closer, trying to listen to what they were saying.

* * *

"G-Good to see you sir..." the officer said in a nervous voice.

"What did you find at the house?" Asked the hooded man, clearly wanting to get right to the point.

"Um...yes. The one thing that stood out in that house was a room filled with things for children. Furniture, toys, clothes, the whole deal. At first we thought that we were investigating the wrong place, but we found one of those chambers Lord Vader uses right next to the child's room."

The hooded man crossed his arms, "So it was as I thought... perhaps Vader is playing house with a family here..."

Suddenly he looked up, his eyes narrowed and lingering at the edge of the building's roof.

The officer stared at the man uncertainly until he finally spoke.

"You are dismissed. I will get to the bottom of this myself."

With that the hooded man left.

* * *

Ahsoka hurried back to the house, still holding the basket as a way to disguise her identity further.

Vader had been right, dangerous people were investigating him.

But why? Had Vader done something to make the Emperor act?

She really wished she could talk to him to know what was happening, but he had only contacted her _once_ in the past two weeks. Of course, she kept this a secret from Leia and assured the little one that he did call but could only do it after her bedtime. The girl had believed her at first but the lie was wearing thin as she was very perceptive.

Finally, Ahsoka felt a bit of relief wash over her once she finally made it to the home.

Leia was perfectly safe sitting in the living area reading a picture book while her grandparents watched the holonet.

"Thank you for going grocery shopping for us," Jobal said with an appreciative smile though it disappeared quickly when she noticed the worried look on Ahsoka's face. "Is something wrong?"

"Leia and I need to leave the planet."

Leia looked up from her book with a smile, "Are we going to see Daddy?"

"Yes, so go and get your things packed," Ahsoka lied.

The girl cheered and ran to her room, the book forgotten on the floor.

Now alone, Ahsoka's voice took a more serious tone, "What Vader warned me about is happening right now. His house at the lake was searched and they found a lot of Leia's things."

Ruwee frowned deeply, "Those blasted Imperials..."

"When are you going to leave?" Jobal asked.

"As soon as possible. Their people are dangerous and I can't risk Leia getting hurt."

"Of course," Jobal agreed. "I know Anakin left a ship for you, but you can take ours instead. It's at our landing platform nearby. We'll go there with you."

* * *

After getting Leia packed and ready, they all walked to a large building two blocks away from the Naberrie home. Since there wasn't a lot of room between the houses, the neighborhood had built the large building with several landing platforms for those that paid for them.

"Come visit again okay?" Jobal said tearfully to Leia as they stood on the ramp of the ship.

The little girl nodded with a smile on her face, "Okay. I'll bring you a present too."

Jobal laughed softly as her husband knelt down to hug his granddaughter.

"You be good alright?"

Ahsoka watched the exchange before stepping forward, it was time to leave.

She took Leia's hand and led her inside the ship while she waved at her grandparents.

"Bye Grandma. Bye Grandpa!"

Ruwee and Jobal held each other as they watched the ship fly. There went that last remaining link to their daughter, their precious granddaughter, and they hoped with all they had that she would be safe.

* * *

It had been hard to calm down the excited Leia after they entered the ship, and even harder to explain to her that they wouldn't be seeing her father right away. She had been upset, but had calmed down and taken possession of a table where she could draw.

Ahsoka glanced back at Leia from the cockpit. The little one was sitting on the table with her eyes narrowed and the tip of her tongue peeking out of her mouth as she concentrated in drawing.

Laughing silently to herself at the adorable sight, Ahsoka turned back to the controls and pressed a couple of buttons and soon enough the small image of Obi-Wan appeared in front of her.

"Ahsoka? This is a surprise."

"Hello Master," she bowed her head slightly, mostly out of habit. Even if she had left the order, Obi-Wan was someone she respected.

Obi-Wan smiled before his expression took on a more worried form, "Is there something wrong?"

There _were_ a lot of things wrong, but only a few of those she could tell Obi-Wan now. The rest she would tell him face to face.

"I would be lying if I said there wasn't," she said. "To make a long story short, I have Leia with me."

Obi-Wan almost gaped at that.

"I'm on my way to Tatooine. There are some dangerous people after us and I need your help to keep her safe."

"Of course, but what sort of _people_ are you talking about? And how dangerous?"

"They're called the 'Emperor's Hands' and they are Force users trained in the Dark Side to be assassins," Ahsoka informed. "I suppose you can guess just how dangerous they are."

Obi-Wan nodded slowly, the gears already turning in his head.

"I will send you the coordinates for a safe place where you can land. Luckily the Empire doesn't set foot here unless Jabba is...misbehaving."

"Thank you," she smiled.

"May the Force be with you," Obi-Wan said before ending the transmission.

* * *

Obi-Wan leaned back on his chair while rubbing his beard, something he often did whenever he was thinking very carefully about something, also something that he found himself doing a lot more of recently.

Ahsoka was coming to Tatooine with Leia looking for protection against Force sensitive assassins.

He wanted to believe that he could use his abilities to help, but he hadn't used his lightsaber in years, even just for training so he didn't know how he would fare against someone who used a lightsaber skillfully.

Perhaps he should start training with his lightsaber again. Up until now he had made due with only his Force abilities to avoid fighting. He always told himself that it was the Jedi way, ending disputes peacefully but deep down he knew the real reason for why he hadn't touched his lightsaber in years.

The memories.

Every time he grasped the hilt of his lightsaber, he was met with haunting memories.

The agonizing hot weather of Mustafar...

The hate-filled eyes of his old apprentice...

The feeling of his lightsaber cutting through limbs...

Obi-Wan closed his eyes and let out a long drawn out sigh. Not even once did he think that he would ever have to fight Anakin, but now here he was years later, feeling a lot older than he actually was, too afraid to face the memories of said fight.

However, he needed to do just that, and soon...

To add to his worries, there was also something else he needed to face. Leia was coming, and Padmé needed to know. He was happy to tell her that she would be reunited with her daughter, of course, but he also knew how dangerous it was to have the twins together.

Force sensitive siblings almost always had deeper bonds than even Master and Apprentice. In this case they were not only siblings, but twins **and** Anakin Skywalker's kids. It would be near impossible for Vader, much less the Emperor, to not notice their bond. It would be like a shining beacon in the dark of the night.

Obi-Wan continued to rub his beard, wondering how he was going to get them all through this safely.

* * *

The Emperor was fuming.

A whole fleet _gone_!

It simply cut off all communications and disappeared.

The Executor was declared a casualty of a cowardly attack from the Rebels, but in reality he had no idea what happened. The Rebels could have very well destroyed it but he knew better than to believe in something so convenient.

No. This was _Vader._

The very same Vader that had, just as his ship, disappeared without a trace.

His apprentice was plotting something much worse than he initially thought. With a full fleet and a star destroyer under his command, Vader could prove to become a thorn at his side.

His hands clenched tightly.

Were it any other time in the past, he would have been amused with Vader's actions, but when he learned that his apprentice was playing house with some bastard child, he had killed all ten officers at his throne room at the time.

Vader had always been laughably weak to his emotions. It was the reason turning him was so easy. From the moment the Jedi separated him from his mother, Vader's fate was sealed.

However, with the most recent developments and the strange ways Vader's presence would flicker between light and dark at random moments, he was beginning to think that maybe Vader could be turned back.

It was a ludicrous thought, and yet here he was wondering just that. All the while his foolish apprentice was off hiding like some coward.

When this was all over, and Vader was kneeling on the ground before him again, he vowed to make him pay.

Vader would need a lot more than that suit to keep on breathing when he was through with him.

* * *

It was early in the morning when Obi-Wan entered the home of the two people he had vowed to protect.

Inside he was met with the disapproving face of Padmé, and a half-awake Luke who did not even notice his presence as he walked into the bathroom.

"What are you doing here?" Padmé asked, her voice firm.

"I came by to let you know that you will be seeing your daughter today."

Padmé's eyes widened before they narrowed as disbelief set in, "What are you trying to do Obi-Wan?"

The Jedi shook his head, "I mean what I say Padmé. I'd wanted to keep you in the dark, but it's useless now." He sat down on a chair and she did the same. "Your daughter, Leia, has lived for many years with Bail and Breha in Alderaan."

"What?!" Padmé let out. "Why did they never tell me? If they knew I was here, looking for her in my own way, why didn't they say anything?"

"It was for her own good. We believed that the twins were better off being separated-"

"But why?" Padmé countered, "I'm tired of this excuse. What makes it so dangerous for them to be together. I doubt Palpatine would actively search for them now that he has that _monster_ with him."

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that just yet," he said and continued before she could argue, "A few weeks ago, Bail and Breha were murdered."

"What about Leia?"

"She went missing, but Ahsoka found her recently. They are both on their way here now."

Padmé nodded, feeling tears in her eyes.

Could it really be happening so quickly? Only a couple of minutes ago she had been going through her daily routine and now she was being told that her daughter was on her way home.

"When are they getting here?"

"In a few hours," Obi-Wan said, "You can come if you would like."

A couple of tears rolled down her cheeks but she wiped them away quickly with her trembling hands.

"I would like that."

* * *

Leia's initial thought when she and Ahsoka exited the ship inside of a large crater covered by tall hills, was that she did not like this planet.

It was _really_ hot and a bit of sand went in her mouth with a gust of wind.

"Ew," she whined and wiped her tongue.

She did not like this planet. She wished her Daddy would come soon and take them somewhere nice.

"They should be here soon," Ahsoka said while watching the youngling sitting on a shadowy area of the crater.

"Is Daddy going to be with them?"

"I told you that he's not coming right now," Ahsoka explained to the sulking little girl.

Leia crossed her arms but then heard something, like the sound of something getting closer. Feeling a bit scared, she ran to Ahsoka's side and hid behind her as a speeder entered the area and stopped near them.

Ahsoka smiled slightly when seeing Obi-Wan but then gasped when she saw who was with him.

There was no way...

* * *

Padmé felt her whole world stop when she saw the little girl hiding behind Ahsoka.

Thoughts and feelings ran rampant inside of her as she got out of the speeder and approached the two, though her gaze was solely on the brown-haired girl.

"Leia."

Leia looked at her with a bit of apprehension, her Daddy had told her to be careful around strangers and to call him quickly if they knew her name. But something was...odd.

The lady was crying, and reaching slowly with one of her hands.

Padmé smiled briefly when seeing the confusion on her daughter's face, understanding that she would be feeling a bit confused over having a stranger act like this. But they would not be strangers any longer.

"I'm...your mother Leia."

"My...Mommy?" Leia repeated slowly, her eyes slowly filling with confusion. "But you were gone."

"No. Not anymore. I'm here now Leia," she reassured.

"But then why-"

"Search your feelings Leia," Ahsoka instructed with a gentle smile.

Leia nodded slowly and closed her eyes, just like she had done with her Daddy. They remained that way for a few moments until she finally opened her brown eyes which were now filled with tears, "You're my Mommy!"

Padmé nodded and finally pulled her daughter into a hug, openly sobbing in happiness at finally being reunited with her.

It seemed like an awfully short time before they separated. Leia's face was full of happiness and awe, but she couldn't help but cock her head to the side in a show of confusion.

"But why didn't Daddy tell me that you were here?" Leia asked.

"I'm sorry Leia, but Bail was-"

"Not him," Leia broke in, "My real Daddy. Are you angry with him Mommy? Is that why he is always sad?"

"Your real Daddy?" Padmé repeated, feeling confused, and turned to Obi-Wan who shook his head. Was she talking about who she was staying with before Ahsoka found her? "Who are you talking about Leia?"

"Maybe we should leave for now?" Ahsoka tried to cut in.

"My Daddy," Leia repeated, "I called him Mr. Vader before I learned that he was my real Daddy."

"Ahsoka," Obi-Wan cut in this time, looking like he'd seen a ghost. "What is she talking about?"

The former Jedi sighed, "Leia has been staying with Vader all this time."

"What?!" Both Padmé and Obi-Wan exclaimed at the same time.

"Did he find out?" The Jedi asked.

Ahsoka nodded, "I'm sure you've felt it too, but being with Leia has begun to change him. I see more of Anakin in him every day."

Padmé looked up when hearing the name, "Anakin? What are you-"

"Vader is coming closer to being Anakin once again. He's turning away from the Dark Side," Ahsoka declared.

Furious brown eyes turned to Obi-Wan, "What is she talking about Obi-Wan? I don't understand any of this! What is going on?"

Ahsoka looked between the two of them, one furious and one nervous, and finally put two and two together.

"You didn't tell her?"

Obi-Wan looked down, "It was for her own good."

"Tell me what?" Padmé asked in a serious voice.

"Padmé... Darth Vader **is** Anakin."

A deafening silence settled in the area. Padmé looked between the two, taking the silent and guilty expression on Obi-Wan's face as proof that Ahsoka had told the truth.

Before words could leave her mouth, they were all interrupted by the roaring engine of a ship.

Everyone looked up to see a large black ship hover over the area before four hooded figures jumped down from it and landed in front of the group.

Obi-Wan and Ahsoka instantly stepped in front of the family, while Padmé took Leia and ran back to the speeder where Luke had been watching everything from.

"Who are you?" Obi-Wan asked in a neutral voice.

"We are no one," responded a male voice.

"How did you find us this quickly?" Ahsoka couldn't help but ask.

One of the hooded figures chuckled, "It's not too surprising. I searched Vader's Naboo home by myself. In a child's room, I found a very _adorable_ drawing with the names Ruwee and Jobal. From then, I simply checked the records, found the home, and placed a locator on the ship just in case they decided to leave while my back was turned. The only reason I didn't approach you sooner was because I was told not to."

Four red blades hissed as they came to life. Ahsoka ignited her two light sabers while Obi-Wan held his tightly on his hand with a troubled expression before he relaxed and the blue blade of his lightsaber emerged.

"We will talk about all of this later, but for now you have to get the younglings away from here," Obi-Wan said to Padmé without taking his eyes away from the enemies. "Go to where we agreed on."

Padmé quickly recalled an occasion in which he had told her of a safe place to go in case they were ever in danger. A small hut at the foot of a large hill, barely visible unless one was searching for it.

She nodded fiercely, grabbed Leia by the hand, and led her to the speeder where Luke was watching the scene, his little blue eyes showing just how scared he was.

Padmé had no time to relish as she sat Leia next to Luke, and quickly turned on the speeder.

"The brats aren't going anywhere!" One of the Emperor's Hands declared in a deep voice before he used the Force to dash towards the speeder at a fast speed.

Luckily, Obi-Wan quickly reacted and used a Force Push to kill the man's momentum and causing him to trip over his feet and fall. The hood came undone to reveal a youthful face with short black hair.

"Focus on the Jedi for now Vislor," said one of the hooded figures in a masculine voice. He removed his hood to reveal that he was in fact an Anzat.

Obi-Wan narrowed his eyes on him. The Anzati were a humanoid species but with two tentacles on their cheeks. Right now the one they were facing had his tentacles curled in, but he had heard some terrible things about them. From the little knowledge he had, he knew that they used those tentacles to feed on the brains of whoever was unfortunate enough to face them.

"Though we are on opposing sides, I see no need to be uncivil with you," said the Anzat. "You are Jedi after all. A most worthy challenge. My name is Cassir Moraal."

There was a pause, as if he was trying to get them to say their names, but the two remained quiet causing Cassir to laugh.

"No use in withholding information, you are about to die after all."

As he said that, Cassir used the Force to hurl a rock at Obi-Wan who quickly stepped back and cut it in two.

The effect was instant for Obi-Wan. As soon as his lightsaber cut through the rock, he was struck by haunting memories that caused him to lose concentration and be pulled towards the Anzat.

"Obi-Wan!" Ahsoka yelled and tried to go after him but was stopped by the three remaining Hands, who moved to stand between her and Obi-Wan.

"You're not going anywhere," came a feminine voice from one of the hooded figures, "You will be forced to watch as your friend is killed."

Ahsoka dropped into her ready stance and smirked, "I'm sorry to say that there is no way for your leader to beat him."

Vislor chuckled, "He's not our leader."

"Oh, so you're one of those underlings that feel like there is no leader within your group," Ahsoka said with a smirk.

"You are mistaken Jedi," said the other hooded figure in a thick accent. She pulled back her hood to reveal herself as a purple Twi-lek, "We do have a leader. She is just not here."

Ahsoka chuckled, "Couldn't make it?"

The last of the hooded figures chuckled and turned her head in the direction that the speeder had taken off.

Ahsoka's blood ran cold when she realized what they were trying to say.

"Our leader should be standing over the bodies of the happy family by now."

* * *

"Where are we going mom?" Luke asked in a worried tone. "Why did we leave Uncle Ben behind?"

Padmé tried her best to smile despite the situation. "Don't worry Luke, he's okay."

"But those people looked really mean," Leia pointed out.

The mother bit her lip. Luke usually took whatever answer she gave but Leia appeared to have none of that. To make things more complicating, he was nodding in agreement with his sister.

"Listen you two-"

"Mom look out!"

Padmé looked up just in time to see a ship hovering above them and moved the speeder just as it fired on them. Unfortunately she was not able to escape the blast and the speeder was knocked aside ferociously.

Disoriented with her body throbbing painfully all over, Padmé slowly regained her senses, looking around disoriented at first until her eyes went wide and she sat up despite the pain.

Luke and Leia! Where were they?!

She tried to stand but screamed in pain when she tried to put weight on her right foot. Twisted no doubt. Even so, she managed to sit up and looked around as the sand cleared around them and she could finally see her two babies, still strapped to the speeder.

Despite Leia bleeding a bit from the head, it didn't seem that they had taken any serious injuries, a relieved smile settled on her face as she dragged herself towards them.

Suddenly, she noticed a dark figure emerge from a cloud of sand.

It was a woman wearing a heavy black cloak. Padmé tried not to gasp at her appearance. Despite her face being scarred, the thing that stood out to Padmé was the woman's eyes. They were a sickly dark yellow color that sent chills down her spine.

The woman remained still for a moment before she turned in the direction of Luke and Leia.

"Leave them out of this!" Padmé screamed in horror, and tried to stand but cried out in pain again as her foot gave out under her weight. "Don't touch them!"

"I will only kill one," the leader of the Emperor's Hands stated in a calm voice as she walked to them.

"No! I won't let you!"

Ignoring the mother's screams, the woman kept a steady face until she was finally standing next to the wrecked speeder and over the two unconscious children.

Her lightsaber came to life.

"Stop! No! Please! Not them! Kill me instead!" Padmé cried desperately, even bearing through the pain to stand and stumble towards them, but was pushed back with the Force before she could get too close.

Padmé's heart was going crazy, she had no idea what to do. There was a lot more distance between them now and the woman had raised the blade in the air.

"NO!"

The desert got noticeably colder as the Emperor's Hand was ferociously pushed away from the twins and crashed against the sand with such force that she kicked up a cloud of dust.

Padmé looked up slowly as a ship descended from the sky with a hooded figure standing on top of it.

The Emperor's Hand got up slowly, her yellow eyes glaring hatefully at the person standing on top of the hovering ship, "Who are you?"

"You will pay for making my child bleed," the hooded figure stated in a voice so cold that even the Emperor's Hand found herself taking an involuntary step back.

He jumped down from the ship, the wind causing his hood to come down and reveal the face of Anakin Skywalker.

"A-Anakin..." Padmé stuttered, her eyes wide.

So full of hatred towards the person who had put his daughter in danger, Vader did not even notice that there was someone behind him sprawled on the sand. There was nothing on his mind but a burning desire to kill her in the most painful way.

"I'll ask again," the Emperor's Hand hissed as she ignited her red blade, "Who are you?"

"I believe you already know the answer to that question Fane."

Fane studied his face before her eyes widened in realization, "Vader... So that's who you were under the mask."

Vader said nothing, simply raised a hand and, even though Fane tried to fight against anything he might attempt with the Force, she was taken by surprise when Vader broke through her defenses without any trouble, and lifted her in the air with a tight grip on her neck.

She gasped and wheezed for a breath, and just when she was about to lose consciousness, he let her go. Fane dropped ungraciously on the ground before streaks of Sith Lightning hit her body and she screamed in agony.

Vader continued this, relishing in her pain with a twisted smirk on his face.

This was power.

What he was meant to become all along.

Not even the Emperor stood a chance against him, he was invincible.

* * *

Obi-Wan and Ahsoka looked off in the distance, the Emperor's Hands doing the same as they were hit by an unexpectedly powerful wave of the Dark Side.

"That's..." Ahsoka muttered with her eyes wide, easily identifying the Force signature.

"Vader," Obi-Wan finished for her with a grim expression.

* * *

Vader could almost laugh as Fane writhed on the ground like the worm she was.

"Anakin!"

The Sigh Lightning ceased almost immediately. His lips parted slightly once he turned his head when hearing the voice, _her_ voice.

"P-Padmé? You... You're alive..." Anakin muttered to himself in a broken voice as his knees grew week and he staggered backwards, reeling in shock.

What just happened?

The moment he entered the planet he had easily found Leia's scared Force signature, but the moment it weakened severely in a matter of seconds, he had rushed to where she was, even jumping out of his ship and letting R7 pilot instead.

When he spotted Leia on a wrecked speeder and someone walking towards her, he had seen red and let rage take over. But now...

"It's me Ani," Padmé nodded in a gentle voice, relieved to see that her Ani was still in there.

She had been horrified at what she saw him do. It wasn't so much hurting the woman who had tried to kill her children, but the way Anakin seemed to enjoy and draw pleasure from her suffering. Padmé did not feel the least bit sorry for the woman, but Anakin had just felt so _wrong_.

Anakin bit his trembling lip, trying desperately to stop himself from breaking down right there and then, he had never felt so overwhelmed in his whole life.

However, he couldn't afford to waver. There was still something that he needed to do.

With some effort, he tore his eyes away from Padmé and narrowed them on Fane, "I believed the Emperor would try to track me down, but not with the _highly esteemed_ head of the Emperor's Hands."

Fane growled, barely managing to get on all-fours as the aftereffects of the lighting were still causing her body to shake involuntarily. It was just as strong as when the Emperor used it on her.

"You will die _Vader_ ," she spat his name.

He smirked slightly at that, finding irony in her words. In a way, he too wished Vader would die.

Putting the last thought away, he showed no hesitation as his red blade cut through the woman, finally killing her.

With the threat to his family gone, he turned back to Padmé who was trying to crawl over to the speeder, to _their_ daughter's side.

"She's fine," he said while he walked to her side and carried her bridal style.

"How do you know... The Force, right."

He nodded, "Leia is completely fine. Just a few scratches."

"What about Luke?"

"The boy is fine too..." Anakin carefully placed Padmé on the ground next to the speeder.

He carefully unbuckled Leia from her seat and placed her on her mother's arms. Next he moved on to the boy, the blond boy who appeared to be the same age as Leia.

His heart beat wildly against his chest as he picked him up and looked to Padmé.

She could see the confusion in his eyes and smiled fondly when she realized that the two hadn't met.

"Luke is our son. Leia's twin brother."

"Our...son," he repeated slowly as a smile slowly spread across his face and he looked at the boy in a new light. He had his suspicions based on his appearance but his attempt to connect with the boy through the Force had failed as he was unconscious. "We have a family."

Anakin sat next to his wife, quietly enjoying this brief moment of happiness. There was still much he had to say, much _she_ had to say, but he was far too overwhelmed with happiness at the moment that he didn't care. However, there was something bothering him.

"I can sense Ahsoka needs my help," Anakin said.

His ship landed on the ground and out came two medical droids.

"Patient Number 34, you were advised to avoid high intensity activities."

"You have new patients," Anakin said, "Take care of these three."

"At once sir," the other medical droid said when seeing the condition the new patients were in, while the other droid went back into the ship and came out moments later with a stretcher.

Anakin rolled his eyes, "Attend to them here, there is not enough room on the ship."

"Understood sir."

"I won't be long Padmé, you should be safe here."

"Okay."

They shared a look, both not really knowing what to say. Anakin was the first to break their gaze and began to walk into the ship.

"Ani!"

He stopped at the ramp and turned to see her.

"Come back safe," she said with a smile made more beautiful by her twinkling eyes.

It was something she always said back when he left for a mission during the Clone Wars.

"I always do," he smiled, feeling tears in his eyes.

It was an exchange they had every time he left on missions. To think that years after he believed her dead he would be saying these words again.

Padmé remained quiet as he entered the ship and flew off.

She was torn on the inside.

Their last meeting back in Mustafar... she could recall every detail of it to this day. It had been a horrible experience, something that she never thought would happen. Her Ani had actually tried to hurt her.

Even though she had begged him to give up on everything and leave with her so that they could be safe and be a family, he had ignored her words. However, as delirious as she was when giving birth to her children, she had known that there was still good in him. Anakin was not completely gone, he just couldn't be.

When they told her that he had died, she didn't know what to do. She had grown so used to living with him, to knowing that he would come back, that she had no idea how to live a life without him, but she pushed through because her children still needed her. Even so, late at night when she would be in her bed, all alone, her mind would replay moments she had spend with her husband.

And now, he was alive.

Not only that, but he had turned away from the darkness when he saw her.

She was happy. Her family was whole. But at the same time she was terrified that they would be separated again. Anakin had turned away from her once, and she absolutely did not want that to happen again.

Her worry calmed slightly as she watched the droids placing bacta on Luke and Leia.

Her love alone had not been able to pull Anakin out of the darkness, but maybe with all of them together, they could become the family she had always wanted to have.

There were still a lot of things that they needed to say to each other. Mostly about that time on Mustafar, but for now she closed her eyes and clenched her hands to her chest, desperately hoping that this time they could be a family.


End file.
